Origins: Nightstar
by Miyu kuran
Summary: A retelling of the origins of Mar'i Grayson, other wise known as Nightstar. The story of how a princess became a vigilante of Gotham, how she lost her powers, how she regained them, and how she feel in love with the one man she wasn't supposed to. This is her story, her Epic, her life, her Origins. This is how she came be.
1. Zero Year 1

Chapter 1: Zero Year 1

_Authors note:_**_ Bold Italics= Flashbacks_**

_Italics=Author's note/Final notes_

**Chapter 1: Zero Year 1**

The queen of Tamaran ran through the halls of the castle towards the throne room with a speed so great that even the naturally gifted Tamaranians found the speed above the norm. This was it. The time in all her life that Koriand'r had wished would never come...The Gordanians were attacking. The Tamaranian-Gordanian relationship over the last few years was slowly diminishing, but now it was completely broken. The Gordanians wanted Tamaran for their own, but they would not have her without a fight.

"Ryand'r!" The queen called out to her younger brother as she reached the throne room. "Ryand'r it is happening. Fetch Mar'i, we have no time to waste. " The prince, of course, obeyed his sister, and as quickly as he could remove his young niece from the bed she was sleeping in.

"Mother?" The sleepy-eyed princess asked, "What is happening? Is something wrong?"

"Oh, my poor Starshine. Do not fret, everything will be fine." Starfire stroked the hair of the young girl, calming her for the upcoming bad news "Starshine, My love, you must leave Tamaran."

Mar'i stared at her mother in disbelief, "I do not understand. Why am I to leave Tamaran? This is my home, mother. I can't-".

"Mar'i, It is no longer safe for you on Tamaran. The Gordanians are attacking lead by my sister, your aunt, Komand'r. If she knew an heir to the throne beside Ryand'r existed she wouldn't have that. She would kill you on the spot." The young girl still looked confused, "Not only would she kill you for being another heir to the throne, she would have you killed for being only half Tamaranian, my love, and I refuse to let that happen."

"So why would you send me away?" Mar'i asked, "Let us go into battle together, defeat Komand'r. I refuse to disgrace myself by running. Let me face her like the warrior I am." Mar'i pleaded.

"I think not. You are far too young, Mar'i. Eight years of age is not a lot of fighting experience. Besides, I can work on protecting Tamaran knowing you are away and safe." Mar'i nodded. Her mother had always known what was best for her. This time, wouldn't be any different.

"Where will you send me?" Mar'i asked.

"A place where I know they will never touch you." Koriand'r answered, "You will go to Earth, to your father." Koriand'r handed a letter to the young princess.

Mar'i looked up at her mother in surprise, "Father?" Her mother had never spoken of her father before.

"Yes."

"And when will I be able to return?" The young princess asked.

"My Starshine, I love you so very much, but I do not know. You will return to Tamaran when the X'hal sees fit. I will come to get you one day. I promise" Starfire reached for her daughter and pulled her into a crushing hug. She wanted to remember every bit of this moment, her daughter in her arms. She didn't want to let go, but she knew she must. And so she did.

"When you get on Earth you will find the Justice League, they can help you find your father. When you see him give him this letter." Koriand'r instructed.

"How will I know it is him?" Mar'i asked.

"He wears the symbol of a blue bird upon his chest. Though his face is masked, you will know him when you see him. Do you understand?" Though Mar'i didn't she nodded. "Now promise me that you will not return to Tamaran until I come for you."

"I promise, Mother."

"Good girl. Now, Ryand'r!" The queen called to her brother who had been standing there silently waiting for his sister to finish her goodbyes, but before he could answer his sister's calls a force tore through the throne sending all three royals flying.

Mar'i stood up with ringing ears faintly aware of the small stream of blood flowing from a cut on her forehead. She could hardly register the screams and yells coming from her mother and uncle. Before she knew it, her uncle took her up in his arms and flew her out of the throne. The young princess could only scream for her mother as they flew away from the shrinking sight of Tamaran's capital city.

* * *

"Be quiet!" A stern female voice said in a hushed tone, "I think she's waking up."

"Good. I was scared. She was injured," said a male voice.

"Surprisingly, not heavily. She had some cuts and scrapes. Where did you two find her again?" Asked the female voice losing the harsh edge it once had.

"Floating amongst space debris." Answered another male voice.

"What was a child doing there?" the female sounded horrified at the idea.

"I thought she was human when we came across her." The first male voice said

The woman scoffed, "Obviously she's not human if she can survive the vacuum of space, Hal."

"I swear she looks so human." He insisted.

"A lot of Alien species look human."

"Even still, I could swear she was human." The male voice, Hal said.

"Smooth, Jordan." The second male voice said with a chuckle. "Now that we have established that she is not human, any ideas what species she actually is?"

"I'm Tamaranian." Princess Mar'i spoke finally awake. She groaned in pain. She was groggy, her body ached. She wished for nothing more than sleep.

"Tamaranian? She doesn't look it." Commented Hal.

"Where am I?" Asked Mar'i. Looking around she could tell this wasn't her destination of earth. It was a different planet.

"You're on Zamaron. I'm Carol, leader of the Star Sapphires who populate this planet. These two Green Lanterns found you amongst space debris, which I'm guessing is from your ship. Can you tell us who you are?" Mar'i nodded. She tried to stand but winced at the pain and remained seated. This wasn't an official meeting in the Tamaranian court anyway.

"I'm Princess Mar'i of Tamaran, daughter of Queen Koriand'r, deliverer of Tamaran, first of her name." Mar'i recited perfectly.

Hal whistled, "Princess, nice- Wait did you say Tamaran?" Mar'i nodded.

"Do you know of any Tamranians?" She asked.

"Just one. Went by the moniker Starfire on Earth." He answered.

"That is my mother's name. Well, the English translation." Mar'i said excitedly. These men could definitely take her to her father if they knew her mother during her time on Earth.

"Know that we're acquainted better. " Carol turned back to the young girl. "Can you tell us what happened to you?" That's when it all came rushing back to Mar'i. The screaming, The smell of fire and smoke, the fear of being captured, all of it came rushing back.

**_"Starshine, My love, you have to leave Tamaran."_**

**_"Good girl. Now, Ryand'r!"_**

**_"Now, listen carefully, Mar'i. I've already set the proper coordinates to get you to Earth. If anything happens to the ship, hit the eject button and fly to the closest planet. Once there try to see if you can get someone to take you as close to earth as possible before trying to fly there on your own."_**

**_"Hello?! Hello?! This Mar'i of Tamaran. My ship under attack. I need help!" There was no answer on the radio. "Please!" Still no answer. Once again her ship was hit with a barrage of lasers coming from the enemy ship. It was no use. So Mar'i did the only thing she could do. She hit the eject button, sending her flying from the ship seconds before it exploded. She would have flown to the closest planet if not for the hard metal piece of her ship being set into the back of her head, knocking the princess unconscious._**

"I had to leave Tamaran. The Gordanians. My ship was attacked. I tried to eject before the ship exploded, but I was caught in it." She said, holding her head. It hurt. They had bandaged it. Mar'i had remembered the terrible cut she had gotten on her forehead and blow she had taken that knocked her out.

"That explains a lot."

"Her information makes sense. It has been confirmed the Tamaran was attacked by the Gordanians." Carol explained further. "But where were you planning to go, Princess? Tamaran doesn't have many allies that would keep it's princess while the Gordanians are searching for her."

Mar'i smiled sadly, "Yes, that is true. My mother has been trying to improve our relations with other planets, but our history with them seems to be not forgotten."

"So where were you trying to go?" John pushed further.

**"Where will you send me?"**

**"A Place where I know they will never touch you. You will go to Earth, to your father."**

**_"Father?"_**

**_Mar'i opened the letter her mother slipped into her hand before she left. Inside was a letter, and a picture. The picture was of her mother and a man. A man with Mar'i's midnight black, the shape of her nose and her smile. This man, Mar'i knew was her father. This man with the symbol of what looked to be a blue bird on his chest. The only thing written on the back of the picture were the words Nightwing, and Blüdhaven._**

"I was trying to get to Earth to my father," Mar'i pulled the Picture of her father, "I heard you said that you thought I was human, well you were half right. If you're from Earth then I want your aid in order to find him, my father. Do you know this man?" Mar'i showed her saviors the picture. The immediate reaction was hanging mouths from the two green lanterns.

"Nightwing," Hal whispered as he stared in awe at the princess as if he were looking at her for the first time.

"It makes sense." John replied, "He was with Starfire."

"She must not have told him," Hal said with surprise. "We'll have to bring her to Earth. If she's his kid…" Hall trailed off.

"The only way to tell if she's really telling the truth is to bring her to him," John said as if a decision had been made.

"Alright, Princess. We'll take you to Earth, to you father."

* * *

_Final Notes:_

_Original word count:1445_

_Sorry, I know. It's short! More will be out soon This I swear!_

_Please Review/Like/follow_

_with love,_

_Miyu K.~ June 14, 2014_


	2. Zero Year 2

_Authors note:_**_ Bold Italics= Flashbacks_**

_Italics=Author's note/Final notes_

* * *

**Chapter 2: Zero Year 2 **

Hal Jordan being the amazing Green Lantern was prepared for anything, but he was not prepared for the the child the princess turned into when she finally got comfortable around them. She was very talkative... Hal wasn't really sure what to make of it other than it was just more reinsurance that this girl was really the daughter of Nightwing. It was hard getting the girl to talk when they had found her, but now Hal couldn't shut her up even if he wanted to. She would tell him about Tamaran how she was always kept in the Palace how her mother always took care of anything and everything she needed. How her mother trained her in combat and other things. She would talk and talk and talk, and after two weeks abroad the ship with Hal on the way to Earth she finally ran out of things to say. It was as if the closer they got to his home that the quieter Mar'i got. Hal wasn't sure if it was a good thing or a bad thing.

"Mar'i, are you okay?" Hal asked, "You're quiet, and it's not that I'm not enjoying the silence, but it seems a little out of character." Mar'i said nothing only looking out the window of the ship. "Mar'i." He called again this time really worried.

"You know my father, don't you?" Her voice rang out the accusation without even looking away from the window, with such an icy tone to it that she again reminded him of a certain caped crusader, and his protégés. He thought the habit was something taught, but it seems to be hereditary as well. Hal didn't know when she figured out he knew her father, but he had prepared for this issue.

"I do." Hal confirmed.

"Tell me about him." She said this time looking him straight in the eye as if she could see them behind the mask.

_**"We have a small issue." John Stewart said to Carol Ferris and Hal jordan. **_

_**"And that would be?" Carol inquired. **_

_**"How exactly are we going to keep our promise to that little girl that we're going to take her Earth?" John answered. Two days ago they agreed to take Princess Mar'i of Tamaran to Earth to leave her in the care of her supposed father. **_

_**"I don't see the issue. Why don't you two just take her back. You know Nightwing well, don't you?" Carol said as if it were that simple. **_

_**"We do, but we still need to report back to Oa." Hal said. "We were on our way there when we found her, and we came here because it was the closet planet with people we knew. We still need to go to the guardians."**_

_**"Okay then," Carol said. "I'll take her. Whether we like it or not we agreed to take that child to Earth so it has to be one of us." **_

_**"Yeah, Carol, I know but you can't go either." Hal said.**_

_**Carol looked offended. "What! Why?" **_

_**"Batman isn't really friendly with new people(well, he really isn't friendly with people in general), and this news should be kept close to the family. I've known her father since he was a kid, and he's practically Batman's son. And if there is one thing The Batman is, it's overprotective of his family. Sending you, would be sending you to the den of wolves while covering you in pig's blood, and slapping an "EAT ME" sign to your back." Hal explained. "It needs to be either me or John, you can come with us, but it has to be one of us." **_

**"Okay, but we just established that you both need to be heading to Oa. Last I checked the guardians weren't very patient. " Carol said. **

**"Good now you see the issue." Said John. **

**"I don't understand why one of you just goes to Oa while the other comes with me to take Mar'i to Earth." The resounded slap that rang out in the room was from Hal slapping his own forehead. **

**"Why didn't we think of that?" he said, "Carol, you are genius." **

**"Thank you, I try. " Carol answered with a cheeky grin, "Now which one of you are going to take her." **

**"Hal" "John" Both said at the same time. **

**"Really." Carol sighed. **

**"He likes you better." Hal said to John **

**"Whatever, he's known you longer. He'll take this news better from you, Hal." John said in a smug voice. **

**"He has a point, Hal." carol said. **

**"No far, he just doesn't want to deal with him angry, and this is going to make him angry!" Hal almost shouted **

**"It's two against one, you're going." **

**"I didn't want to go see the stupid guardians anyway." Hal mumbled. "Okay, on to our other issue. " Hal said sobering up. "What do we tell Mar'i about her father?"**

**"Well, until we get a proper DNA test we won't for sure if she's even really his daughter." John pointed out. "If this turns out to be some elaborate plan from a villain, we could give away some very important information." **

**"But if we have to tell her something?" Carol asked**

**"So the bare minimum?" Hal asked **

**"The bare minimum." John agreed.**

"You're father is a very good man." Hal said. "One of the best people I've ever meet."

"Tell me more than that, Hal. I get that from the servants in the palace back on Tamaran. Tell me things like what he liked to do during his childhood, what accomplishments he's made in his life, who his parents are, or his name. I don't even know my own father name! The closest thing I have to a name is Nightwing. The same thing the whole world calls him."

"You're nervous to meet him." Hal concluded.

"I'm expected to stay with a person who I know nothing about indefinitely, and worse he knows nothing about me. I don't the planet, or the people. I'll have to learn a completely different culture. I don't know what my mother was thinking by sending me to Earth?" Mar'i sighed finally venting the things that had been weighing heavily in her mind since she had left Tamaran.

"Hey, Princess. Firstly, you will get to know him. You will learn his name, and what he liked to do as a kid. You will learn who his parents were, and everything else about him. You have to have a relationship with a person first before you know anything about them and sadly, Princess, you don't have one yet, but you will build one. A strong relationship. Secondly, Do you trust me?" He asked

"Of course." She answered with a doubt.

"When did you start to trust and like me?"

"I do not know. The day after I meet you, if I were to guess." Mar'i said.

"Do you trust Carol and John?"

"Yes."

"Mar'i, you knew us for a total of two days before you started to trust and began opening up to us. Heck, the two days you were on Zamaron you were trying to spar with the other Star Sapphires like you've known them you're whole life! You shouldn't be worried about learning the culture, and Nightwing will get to know you. In 12 hours after a very long two weeks stuck in this space ship, you will get to meet your father. Trust me when I say he's exactly like you dreamed your father will be. He won't disappoint you. "

"Okay." She still sounded unsure.

"If things don't work out with him, Carol's promise still stands. I'll take you back to Zamaron and you can stay there with her. " Hal said.

"Really?" Her whole face perked up as if the idea seemed to be the best option right now.

"Yup, if you feel uncomfortable on Earth, or with you father. I'll take you back to Zamaron, but only if you really try to get to know him."

"Okay, I'll try."

"That's all I ask." Hal said. The two quickly fell into silence before Mar'i broke it.

"Hal?"

"Yes?"

"Before I forget, I wanted to thank you, Hal Jordan. You are my first friends from Earth, I owe you my life."

"Kid, It's no problem. It's what I do, I'm glad I could help." Hal sighed slightly grateful that at the last minute Carol wasn't able to come because she would never let him live down the Kodiak moment he just had.

* * *

"Hey Hal, is that Earth? It's beautiful. Is it a tropical planet like Tamaran? or does it get cold? Ooo, if it gets cold does that means it snows? Have you ever seen snow before, Hal. What's Snow like, Hal? Is it cold? It doesn't get cold on Tamaran, did you know that? Can we go see snow first, Hal. Or can we see the ocean instead? I've never seen a body of water that filled with salt. Is the ocean really salt water, Hal? Have you seen the ocean, Hal? Is the ocean pretty? My mother said the ocean was pretty that's all she would ever talk about when she talked about her time on Earth. Hal, can it snow where there's an ocean? Because that would be cool. Hal, are you listening? Hal! Hal!"

"YES!" Hal yelled as Mar'i screamed his name in his hear.

"Were you even listening?" Mar'i asked

"Of course I was. I listen to everything you have to say, Princess."

"No you don't. You just nod every minute or so so that i'll think you're paying attention." Mar'i accused.

"I do not!"

"Prove it!"

"Fine." Hal said, "The answers to your questions in order are: Yes; No; Yes; Yes; Yes; Its like powdered ice; Yes; I did not know that; No, we have other things to do; Same verse same as the first; Yes; Yes, I have; I would like to think so; Yes it can, but only in the Arctic; I'm pretty sure it would be cool." Mar'i huffed as Hal gave her a grin, "See I was listening."

"Okay, how long till we get to Earth?"

"Ten minutes, before we actually go to Earth we need to go the Watch Tower so I can call your father and tell him to meet us in a few hours." Hal said messing with some of the controls on the ship. Are you excited?"

"A little." Mar'i admitted. "My mother only had good things to say about Earth the few times she talked about it."

"Wow, what happened to that girl who was scared of going to earth 12 hours ago."

"She's gone for the moment, but trust me she'll come back." Mar'i assured. "You said We'll meet my father in a few hours. Why a few hours? Why not now?"

"Well, I want to take you around Earth a little bit. Maybe take you shopping?" Hal said

"Shopping? " Mar'i asked. "What is that? We don't have this "shopping" on Tamaran."

"Oh, this is going to be fun."

And Hal did as he said. He took the young princess shopping. Bought her an outfit that didn't stick out so much, and as much as Hal hated shopping normally, with Mar'i he found that he enjoyed it. Her smile as she tried on clothes. Her frown when he made her buy tights and long sleeve shirts. Complaining that on Tamaran covering up so is pointless, and then watching her face light up when she tried on variations and variations of head bands. From simple headbands, to ones with large elaborate flowers, to ones with colorful bows. Mar'i made Hal buy at least twenty. Hal took Mar'i to all the places he could in the short time that they had, but sadly their time together had come to an end.

"Hal, We must go back to that wonderful place! The mall of shopping! So many wonderful things to purchase. Hal, we must return, but with John and Carol next time!" Mar'i chatted excitedly as they walked through the Halls of the Watch Tower. "I adore this 'headband' contraption, we have similar on Tamaran but not so fashionable! Hal, we must see one of those movies, you were telling me about, promise one day we'll go?"

"Promise. " Hal said with a nod. He then instructed Mar'i to stay in a room till he returned asking her to play with her new rabbit stuffed animal.

Hal sighed this was not going to be easy.

"Lantern." A gruff voice called out making Hal jump.

"Batman," The green lantern greeted.

"Hey Hal," Nightwing called from behind the caped crusader. Hal didn't even see him there.

"What is this about, Jordan? Why did I need to be called out of Gotham?"

"It's important, trust me." Hal gestured to the room next to the one he put Mar'i in and followed the two Gothamites inside.

"Now that we're in private tell us what you've found out about Nightwing, Hal." Batman ordered.

"How do you know it's about Nightwing?" Hal asked.

"You put a lot of stress on Nightwing being here when I talked to you. I'm sure he's even figured this out just because of his presence here."

Hal looked at the younger man in surprise, who only shrugged his shoulders in response. "Well then, I better get on with this." Hal said. "Nightwing, were you in a relationship with Starfire eight years ago?" Hal asked suddenly.

Nightwing thought for a minute, "Yes, that about right. I was with her a little after but that's time we were together, before we called it quits the first time."

"What's the point of this, Hal." Batman demanded.

"This." Hal flipped a switch revealing the double sided mirror looking into the room currently holding Mar'i. "John and I found her floating in space after her ship had been attacked. She is Princess Mar'i of Tamaran who ran away from Tamaran after the Gordanian attack, she also claims to be the daughter of Starfire and you, Nightwing."

"Holy Shit." Was the only thing that came out of the Nightwing's mouth.

"What proof do you have that she is who she says she is?" Batman asked a raised eyebrow.

"Other than her word, This letter from Starfire, addressed to you, Dick. In the letter was also a picture of you, further pushing my belief that she is really your kid." He handed Nightwing the letter. "It took a while to get that letter from her. She wouldn't even let me hold for a while. The only reason I have it now is because I promised her that I wouldn't read it."

"And did you?" Nightwing asked before opening the letter.

"No, I didn't." Hal answered, and with that Nightwing began to read the words of his former lover. "Believe it or not, Bats, I'm sure that girl is his daughter 100%."

"We won't be sure until a DNA test." He replied only studying the child in the other room.

"Trust me, I know we still have to do a Paternity test, but I spent two weeks alone on a ship with that kid, she's done some things that I've only seen Dick do as a kid." Hal said

"Like what?"

"We'll talk, I thought Dick had a mouth when he was a kid, but I think she's got you beat . Also reading body language, She knows when I'm lying it took me a whole two weeks to be able to convincingly lie to her. Before I even told her I knew a lot about you she figured it out long before she asked about you. She figured out that there were some issues getting her here, and that John couldn't come like we originally said. She so smart, I almost can't believe she that smart and the only child I knew that was intelligent like that was-"

"Me." Nightwing cut off finish reading the letter. "This is Kory's handwriting, alright. It says she apologizes for not telling me about our daughter, and that she leaves her in my hands now." Nightwing dropped the letter before sitting down in the chair next to him and resting his hands on his face. "I just can't believe she would have kept something like this from me. An eight year old? Really I was with Kory for a little bit 6 or 7 years ago, she had multiple time to tell me and she didn't. I don't understand why."

"We still need a paternity test." The dark knight said taking the letter from his former Protégé, and reading it. "Though right now we need to discuss what we're going to do with the girl. "

"If you don't want her, or the Paternity test comes out negative Carol said she will take her on Zamaron. Carol loves her, in fact all the Star Sapphires do. She would be happy there, just say the word and she'll be out of you hair."

"WHAT!" Nightwing shot up, "No. no, even if she's not mine, this girl is convinced she's my daughter, Kory gave her to me and she's my responsibility now." Nightwing gave a chuckle it wasn't one of his usual laughs of amusement more of one of self-pity. "Kory and I talked about children a lot. We said we name a boy, Ryand'r, and if it was a girl we would call her Mar'i, Mary in english, after my mother. At least Kory thought of me slightly when she decided to raise this child alone." Dick paused. " I'm going to go talk to her." Dick quickly exited the room to enter the other room. Giving one final glance at the glass, taking the image of his daughter in and went to go meet her.

Dick went into the room without even knocking and saw the girl playing with a stuffed rabbit that Hal must have gotten her. Dick also took time to notice she wore season appropriate clothing, most likely Hal's doing as well because Tamaranian's didn't get cold so they didn't wear tights or long sleeves. She almost looked like a normal human girl, except for the eyes. The same eyes that lured him to Kory. Other than the eyes Dick could say quite confidently she looked just like him. She had his nose, and the shape of his face. She had his hair, that dark color with a slight wave to it. There was no doubt in his mind if there ever was one. This girl is his daughter.

"Oh." She said looking at him. "You must be him, my father." She said. Her voice had a slight foreign tone to it similar to the one that Kory had.

"I am." He agreed. "and you are Mar'i, right?"

"I am." She said and after a slight pause spoke again, "Are you going to send me back to Zamaron?" She asked.

"No." He promised. "Your mother sent you to me, so with me you'll stay."

"Really?" She asked as if she almost couldn't believe it.

"Of course."

"And can we go see one of those movies Hal told me about?" She asked.

"Sure, I don't see why not." Nightwing grinned.

"And we see the ocean, and snow! I wanted to see snow since I was really little! Please take me please, please!"

"Sure one day soon I'll take you to the beach, and come winter you'll see more snow than you'll be able to handle." He answered a little taken back.

"I like you." She said making Nightwing beam. "I know next to nothing about you, but I like you a lot."

"Well what do you want to know about me." He gave his best smile to the little girl.

"Your real name would be a nice start." She said.

Nightwing paused slightly, "Dick." He answered finally, "Dick Grayson."

"Dick Grayson, huh? Grayson is that your surname." She asked. Saying surname like she didn't completely understand the concept. Nightwing nodded his head. "Mar'i Grayson. It has a nice ring to it, don't you think?"

"I do." He said, this time with a genuine smile, "Did you know on Earth our equivalent to the name Mar'i is Mary spelled M-A-R-Y. When we take you out with other people who don't know about Tamaran you will be called that."

"Oh, my mother mentioned something like that. Like when she went normally, and when she modeled here on Earth she had to do so under some other name, right?"

Nightwing nodded, "Yup, her name here on Earth was Kory Anders, everyone who knew her on Earth called her Kory plain and simple Kory."

"Really everyone? Only my uncle ever called her that." Mar'i said

"If you don't believe me you can ask your Uncle Jason." Nightwing replied.

"I have uncles here on Earth, too?" She asked some how amazed at the fact her father had other family.

"Yup, three in fact. Two, if you don't count the last one." Mar'i gave him a confused look, "The youngest one is only ten making him two years older than you, almost three his birthday is coming up soon. "

"Do I have any Aunts?" Mar'i asked.

"Like one and a half." Mar'i gave him another confused look. "Ok well the one you have is Cassandra, you'll meet her as soon as she comes back from Hong Kong, and the half is Stephanie, she's one of your uncle's girlfriend and I'm sure when he graduates high school he'll propose to her and probably marry her after he graduates college, but she's still around all the time. She's like your aunt that's not really your aunt yet. If that makes any sense." Even though Mar'i nodded Nightwing wasn't quite sure she understood. "So how is you uncle on Tamaran? Ryand'r isn't it? I never got to meet him."

Mar'i froze. she just stopped as she stared off into nothing. Nightwing was bout to as what was wrong when Green Lantern and Batman walked into the room breaking her out of the trance as quickly as she fell into it.

"HAL!" The young princess screamed as she ran to hug him.

"Hi princess. So do I have to take you back to Zamaron." He asked smiling as if he already knew the answer

"No, I think I will take my chances on Earth." She said. "Hal, you will come and visit me often, will you not?"

"Of course I will. I believe I still owe you a movie." He smiled as he patted the young girl's head. "Until next time, Princess."

"Goodbye, Hal Jordan. Until we meet again." She said

Dick would be lying to himself if wasn't slightly jealous at the connection his daughter and the Green Lantern had. He knew he would get there eventually but still it irked him that right now the young girl in front of him knew Hal better than she knew her own father and that wounded Dick deeply.

"Don't worry. " Hal said as if he would read Dick's mind. "I've been with that girl for a little over two weeks by the time I come back, she'll know you too, and love you more than she could ever love me. You're her father, don't forget that."

"I won't" Dick promised, and with a pat on his back and a wave to Batman Hal Jordan took his leave.

"Mar'i there's someone I'd like for you to meet. " Nightwing gestured to Batman, "This is Batman, he might as well be my father."

"I'm legally your father." Batman reminded.

"Oh yeah...You've got a lot of kids."

Batman only sighed in response.

"If your my father's father does that make you my grandfather?" Mar'i asked.

"In a way, yes."

"Oh well, you look like a Drach'tal." Mar'i said simply.

Nightwing could barely hold back a laugh with Batman's eyebrows crinkled in confusion.

"A Drach'tal is a creature in Tamaranian myth that drinks the blood of bad children in the night, very similar to our myths about bats." Nightwing explained through laughs.

"So why are you laughing?" The dark knight asked.

"Because that is the first thing Kory said about you when she saw you." And Nightwing fell into a fit of laughter.

Again Batman sighed, "What are you going to do now, Nightwing?"

Nightwing sobered up, and answered, "Take her to Blüdhaven, get her some more clothes and other necessities, go home, get her feed and into bed. After that I'm going to call Babs tell her the situation ask her for help with the legal papers and all, Then I'm am going to sleep, Batman, because I think this is all I can take in one day."

"Call me if you need anything."

"Don't I always?"

* * *

_Final notes- _

_Word count : 4312(wow, now that's too long!) _

_2nd chapter ready to rumble! Thanks for you guys support and to the people who have Liked/followed/reviewed this story already!_

_Please like/follow/review it brings me great joy and helps feed my muse!_

_With great love, _

_ Miyu k.~ _


	3. Zero Year 3

_**Bold Italics=Flashback **_

_Italics=Author's note/ Final Notes_

* * *

**Chapter 3: Zero Year 3**

_**"There's one more thing I should probably tell you about Mar'i, Batman." Hal Jordan said after Nightwing left the room. **_

_**"What?" **_

_**"She seems to have inherited another one of Nightwing's traits. His nightmares." Hal said gravely.**_

_**"Nightmares?" The caped crusader asked.**_

_**"I don't know what they're about, she wouldn't tell me, but I do know one thing. What that girl saw on Tamaran must have been truly horrifying." **_

Dick Grayson awoke to the sound of screaming coming from the other bedroom. He quickly shot up from his bed and ran to the room of his sleeping daughter. This was the seventh night in a row. Nightmares, she had been having them since her first night with him, and Dick was at a completely lost. He tried asking her about them, but he should have known how much that would help. When he saw his parents fall he didn't want to talk about his nightmares either. It was only when Bruce revealed that he still had his nightmares about his parents that Dick finally opened up. Dick tried to do the same thing, but it didn't have the same effect. With him Bruce knew what his nightmares were about even before Dick told him, but Dick didn't know what Mar'i's nightmares were about it. It didn't help that she refused to tell him. She was stubborn, A trait Dick wished she didn't pick up from her mother because he wanted nothing more than to stop what ever was troubling his daughter, and get a good night's sleep.

"Mar'i, Wake up. It's only a nightmare. It isn't real!" Dick shook the young girl awake. "Mar'i!" Finally the young girl opened her eyes.

"I'm sorry, did I wake you again?" Mar'i asked rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.

"Yes, you did. Not that I mind, Mar'i, I'm just worried is all." They have been going through this same routine every night. "Will you tell me what your nightmare was about?" he always asked.

And every single time he got the same answer. "No." Dick sighed knowing he couldn't push her on the subject.

"Do you want to sleep in my bed for the rest of the night?" Dick asked.

And every time she answered, "Yes."

With another sigh the father picked his daughter and carried her off to his bedroom. Hopefully they should catch a few more hours of sleep, and in the morning Dick knew he was going to have to make a call.

* * *

Mar'i sat in the living room watch the television as she heard her father on the phone in the other room. The past week, she would say she has been enjoying Blüdhaven. She loved spending the days with her father till he had to patrol at night. She always waited up for him, but usually that was more fore herself than him. The Nightmares were getting worse. At first she could ignore them. When Hal inquired as to why she was tossing and turning at night she just wrote it off as a bad dream she couldn't even be bothered with remembering, but the longer they stayed together Hal began to notice that the nightmares got worse. She was grateful that he tried his best not to mention them, but it seems she would not be getting this luxury with her father.

"Come on, Mar'i." Her father said when he got off the phone. "We're taking a little trip."

"To where?" Mar'i inquired

"To Gotham, It's time you meet our family." If Mar'i wasn't going to open up to him, maybe she would open up to one of them.

After the the long 3 hour drive to gotham, the two Graysons found themselves pulling up to the Wayne Manor.

"Ah, Master Dick. Master Bruce did tell me you were to be arriving for lunch, and this is your plus one I see." A british man said after opening the door for them,

"Hey Alfred," Dick greeted, "This is Mary. Say hi, Mary."

"How do you do, sir." The young princess greeted properly.

"I am well, Miss Mary. Now I do believe she has more manners than you did, Master Dick." Alfred teased slightly, as he let the two into the manor.

"Oh come on, Alfred, I was good kid."

"Yes you were, Richard, but I do recall we having to teach you not to call women, "Hey Lady." Instead of inquiring their name."

"That was one time." Dick protested.

"And what of the time you spilled your beverage on some poor gentlemen and instead of apologizing you hid underneath the refreashments table and ended up tipping the whole thing over."

"..." Dick stayed quiet.

Round one: 1 Alfred- 0 Dick.

When Dick finally came up with a retort he was cut off by the sound of light giggling floating in the air.

"I'm sorry, Miss Mary. It seems I have behaved in ways that are not decorum."

"It's no problem." Mary said in between giggles "I find the humor refreshing." She laughed this time slightly louder, "You have a certain wit about you, don't you Alfred?"

"I would like to think so, Miss." Alfred bowed after excusing himself to continue his chores. Leaving only Mary's father to show her around.

"And this is the kitchen. Though really only Alfred uses it, because the rest of us can't cook." Dick said.

"Hey! I resent that!" Came a voice. Walking into the kitchen was none other than Stephanie Brown golden hair saying behind and a grin present on her lips, "I can make waffles." She defended.

"It's good to see you too, Steph." Dick greeted knowing that was the closest thing he was going to get to one.

"Oh, Is this her? Wow, Dick, she's pretty." Stephanie complimented. "Hello, I'm Stephanie." She said to the child.

"I'm Mary, it's a pleasure to meet you," Mar'i said genuinely

"How proper of her. Don't worry we'll get that out of you soon enough," Dick protested to that statement but Stephanie choose to ignore it and went onto a new subject. "You know you are really pretty, prettier than that security footage we saw of you that we hacked. Bruce wouldn't tell us anything. He was always like, "Why don't you go to Blüdhaven and seen her for yourselves", and blah, blah, blah. Gosh, that man can keep a secret. Well, he is Batman, but you get what I'm saying. If I had time to drive the three hours to Blüdhaven I would, but college classes and the whole shebang."

Before Mar'i could even thank Stephanie for the compliment, Dick was fuming. "Is that why you guys didn't sound surprised when I called you about Mary three days ago!" Stephanie being the master of these types of situations handled it with the grace and poise she always possessed.

"I DIDN'T DO IT! TAKING MARY! BYE!" She grabbed the poor young girl's hand and dragged her away from the kitchen stopping at the foot of the stairs.

At this point Mary was frazzled. Her first thought of the blonde was... Well, she sure was animated. Stephanie was a character alright, but what Mar'i did not know was that compared to some of the others Stephanie was tame.

"Alright looks like I'll be giving the rest of this tour. " Stephanie announced. "You did see all all of down stairs, right?" Mar'i nodded. "Great, because it's time to play a little game I like to call, 'let's avoid Dick for a while.' So, I'll show you around upstairs while your dad cools off down here. We'll start at the Master, then work our way down to my room. Sound cool?" She asked. Again Mar'i only nodded. Stephanie smiled at her. "You're going to have to talk to me eventually. I can't hold a conversation by myself, and trust me I've tried." At this Mar'i cracked a smile. "Success." Stephanie cheered. Stephanied showed Mar'i all of the rooms, well really only the ones that were inhabited by people, she showed Mar'i all of the Wayne family paintings on the wall. Finally they reached Stephanie's room.

"And this is my lovely room." She said leading Mar'i into. "Yes, I know isn't glorious?" Stephanie teased.

"Why is your room all the way back here?" Ma'ri asked. "There were plenty of empty room closer to everything."

"Trust me you'll see." Stephanie said. "When the boys get going it's best to be as far away as possible. Even Babs's room is down here with mine to keep away from their antics.

"Antics?" Mar'i echoed.

"It's mostly just Jason and Tim. They'll try to kill each other, but God forbid someone else try to. Sometimes Damian will try something but it's usually to cause mass pain to everyone, he really doesn't have a single target. Trust me, you'll see."

"But isn't this a far walk to do everyday? It doesn't seem very practical."

"Well, I really don't live here." Stephanie started. "I actually live on campus at my university, but some nights if my patrols end here or close to here I'll stay, but usually not often. It's like I'm part of the family, but not part of the family. If that makes sense." Mar'i shook her head, "Of course it doesn't. Well, I didn't start out like everyone here, I wasn't a gymnast, or an acrobat, or anything like that. I was just a kid with slightly better agility than most. So, when my father started doing bad things again, I had to do something and that something was put on a mask and cape, and become a Gotham vigilante. I trained with Batman, and Batgirl, and Oracle, and the other Birds of Prey, but eventually they said I wasn't cut out for the superhero gig, and they cut me loose. I still kept patrol, and training in order to prove them wrong. I guess I did because I'm Batgirl now, but at times I feel as though I really don't fit in with them. Understand better now, if it wasn't for the fact that I was batgirl and dating Tim I would never even be part of this family."

Mar'i shook her head in disagreement, "I don't think so." She said. "You have to remember that you are part of this family you have been for a while and I'm sure the others will say the same thing. I don't understand why you brought this up. You seem like you've gotten over this issues a long time ago, you didn't need to talk about it." Through Stephanie's whole story Mar'i payed attention, but something was off. Stephanie's body language, She really seemed to be that upset about this topic. While her voice quivered and hiccupped at some parts, it seemed to all be an act. She seemed too far relaxed to be upset by this.

"Dick was right, you are good." Stephanie jumped up off the bed becoming her animated self again, "Oh well, that failed." Mar'i gave stephanie a confused look. "Don't worry you'll figure it out eventually. One down four to go."

"Wait, I don't understand what will I-" sadly Mar'i never got to finish her question as the door slammed open and in ran a teenage boy about Stephanie's age run in. He had a mischievous grin and was slightly laughing as he ran in.

"Quick, Steph, hide me."

"No." Was her flat out answer.

"Come on. Jason is coming he'll be here any moment, and is that Mar'i?"

"Oh! " Stephanie realized, "Sorry, this is Tim. I forgot to introduce him."

"It's fine." Tim and Mar'i said at the same time.

"Mar'i, right?" Tim asked, "Wait sorry, Mary. It's Mary, I forgot we're practicing for when we're out in public. Sorry, sorry. " Tim turned to Stephanie "So about hiding me."

"I already said no." There was a quick whistle in the air, and Mar'i turned away for a second. It was not even a second, but when Mar'i turned back Stephanie was standing there with with Tim's hand in front of her face, and clenched in his fingers was a very sharp looking knife.

Tim glared at the blonde, "I know you saw it it time, why didn't you dodge it?"

"I knew you would catch it." She gave him a cheeky grin, that made him smile then sigh.

"What the heck, Jason?" Tim called out, "You could have hit Stephanie, you butthole!"

Jason walked into to the room, "I told you, you are going to die today." Mar'i let out a little squeak

Everyone turned to her, "Look what you did now, Jason" Stephanie scolded, "You scared the poor child!"

"It's okay. He was just joking." Tim assured. "It was a joke. We play with each other like that all the time."

Mar'i looked unsure. "Playing usually doesn't involve lethal weapons."

"It does in this house." Jason said under his breath

"What was that?"

"Nothing." Jason said a little too fast "Anyway, Drake, lets settle this like real men. A good old duke out till one of us passes out."

"Heck no. You know Alfred forbade us from doing those ever again, that and Fight Club Fridays. So no, I'm not going to fight you. "

"Well, this has gone on long enough, we need to get even, and this is the best way how. So lets go gym now, Drake."

"I'll be ref!" Stephanie shouted

"Not helping!" Tim looked around and sighed, "I really don't want to have to do this, but." Tim ran scooped up Mar'i in his arms and ran out of the room screaming, "I'm with child, you can't hurt me! LALALA! " Tim ran away to the furthest place from that point in the house before he stopped running. That place was the batcave.

"Well, I'm guessing Steph didn't get to this place on the tour. Anyway, this is the batcave, top secret so you can't tell anyone."

"Okay." She promised. "Why is he chasing you anyway." She asked.

"Well, " Tim explained, "About three weeks ago, Jason pulled a prank on me, and I got even. We'll lets just say that cycled continued until today."

"Why what happened?"

"I kinda hacked into all of his social media accounts and put up a video of him doing a very provocative dance for girls, or at least attempting it, all over the internet. Honestly, I don't see why he's mad, he started it. Now I'm finishing it."

"You shouldn't play suck horrible pranks on each other. You are brothers, are you not?"

Tim thought about this for a minute, "Yeah, but if you can't joke around with your family, who can you joke around with? " Tim said honestly, "Didn't you have anyone on-"

"DRAKE!"

"Uh oh. " Tim said as he heard Jason scream his name from the top of the staircase. "Don't worry I won't drag you along this time. See ya around, Mary. If you want to get out of the cave just take the stairs back up." And with that last piece of advice Tim vanished from her sight.

Mar'i looked around, the batcave was silent save for the typing she heard, She guessed that meant that the batman was here, and working. Best not to disturb him she thought. She could greet him later. Then, to her over sensitive ears she heard a soft mewing.

Mar'i turned but found nothing. Strange, she could have sworn she heard a cat. The meow returned this time louder. She turned, but still not a sign of the cat. Was she going crazy? Hearing a cat that wasn't there. Finally the cat meowed again, and this time Mar'i could hear where it was coming from. This time Mar'i looked up, and there it was, a black and white kitten staring at her with large eyes beckoning her to follow it, and she did. With little to no effort Mar'i floated from her place on the ground to the rafter above. Reaching for the cat, it dodged her embrace, and meowed again, before walking away from her. This cat definitely wanted her to follow it. Mar'i followed the cat down the narrow walkway high above the ground she just left. Finally the cat stopped at a smaller little cave inside of the cave.

"Do you want me to go in here?" Mar'i asked the cat. It meowed again indicating it's approval, and she crawled into the hole. The tiny cave would be only able to fit a child anyone older than twelve might have had trouble fitting into it, but Mar'i who was eight had no issue whatsoever, and at the end of the cave Mar'i found a young boy,a dn a dog sitting waiting on her.

"Good, Alfred showed you the way here. I'm Damian, little Grayson, the youngest of my father's children( if you could call the rest that.) Out of the goodness of my heart I've decided to help you today." The boy sounded arrogant, prideful. They had a very mean name for people like that on Tamaran.

"Help me? Why would you help me? You don't know me at all." Mar'i said.

"Honestly, Mini Grayson, I sympathize with you. That's not something I can easily admit." Damian said. "Not to long ago I was in a similar situation you were in, though not exactly the same, eerily similar. While I got out of my former home mentally unscaved you however did not."

Mar'i forze. "I don't know what you're talking about." she said icily.

"Don't bothering lying, because you can't even convince yourself right now. I thought you would be smart, Tiny Grayson. That you would notice when everyone's backs are turned that we all have that same haunted look in our eyes that you see when you look at yourself in the mirror." Damian chastised "You've must have realized that something must have happened to each and everyone of us that we decided the only way to fix this problem was to go out on the streets in the middle of the night and fight crime." Damian studied Mar'i for a moment. "You have bags under your eyes. Let me guess, nightmares. Grayson said you haven't been eating much, lack of appetite. Irritability, though you've tried to be polite to everyone, when they mention something close to whatever's causing you to be this way you get defensive, not to mention the fact when you first met your father, he asked you about something, and you reacted in an odd way. Can you remember what that was?"

_**"So how is you uncle on Tamaran? Ryand'r isn't it? I never got to meet him."**_

_**Mar'i froze. She just stopped as she stared off into nothing. Nightwing was about to as what was wrong when Green Lantern and Batman walked into the room breaking her out of the trance as quickly as she fell into it.**_

"Dick asked about your uncle on Tamran. I watched the security footage, you froze at the question. Why did you do that? Something happened to your uncle, and you saw it while you were still on Tamaran."

Tears began to form in Mary's eyes. "Stop." She ordered, "You don't know what your talking about."

"I think I do otherwise you wouldn't be on the verge of tears. You need to understand that whatever happens to you affects Grayson, and his head can't be on you while he's out in the field, that could get him killed. So I need you to get over whatever is bothering you to keep him alive!"

"IT ISN'T THAT SIMPLE!" Mar'i yelled. Finally the tears spilled over and she curled her knees into her chest and began to sob into them. "It isn't that simple. I want to just forget it ever happened, but I can't! And if I can't hide it, what am I going to do? What do you want me to do confess my crimes, and that will free me. It won't because the more I think about it the more it eats me from the inside out. I killed Ryand'r! Is that what you wanted to hear! That I got my uncle killed! Well, congratulations you win, and I lose. It was all my fault. He told be to get into the ship and when the Gordanians snuck up on us, they killed Ryand'r, but not before he could launch my ship. I watched him bled to death on the cold, hard ground alone because I ran from a fight like a coward. I am a disgrace to my Tamaranian heritage! I thought i could go back to Tamaran when it was safe, but now how can I face my mother and X'hal when i have to tell them how Ryand'r died, how I let him die."

"You're wrong, and stupider than I thought if you truly believe that your uncle dying was your fault." Damian said none too kindly, "Firstly, you are a child going against full grown Gordanian soldiers, you would have been killed and Ryand'r still would have died. You were in a ship that had to be locked for take off when he was killed, by the time you opened the ship your uncle would have been killed and then the Gordanians would have killed you. In all the situations I could throw at you all of them end up with either him dying or the both of you dying. Everyone will accept how your uncle died, no one is going to get mad at you. I'm not mad, your father won't be mad, and your mother won't be mad. Yes, your uncle died, but it was inevitable. The sooner you understand that the better. Besides, dying for something you believe in, or someone you love is a good honorable death. You can live knowing your uncle gave you this second chance at life, and honor him with that."

Mar'i paused, and thought over Damian's words. Dying for something you believe in, or for sone you love is a good honorable death. Yes, she had heard her mother say something similar to her once during training. Those words helped her more than Damian would her know. "Why are you comforting me? You hardly know me." Mar'i said tears almost dry now.

"I told you already this wasn't for you. I did this for your father, so he can stop worrying. Bringing you here, all of it was a ploy to get you to open up, and tell one of us what happened on Tamaran. Brown tried and failed. Todd didn't even give Drake a chance to try, but I thought any of those would have worked on you. " Damian admitted. "You're a princess, your mother must have taught you how to manipulate, and see when you're being manipulated. Most likely for the political part of your job that comes when you get older. Only if someone was direct and harsh with it would you have told someone what you just told me."

"and how do you know all of this about me?" Mar'i asked.

"Simple, because my mother trained me to do the same thing. To manipulate, but never be manipulated. I backed you into a corner and like a scared cat you did what you had to, to escape." Damian paused for a second. "You will want to tell your father this. The sooner he knows the better for the both of you. I know showing weakness is a big no in a palace, but here you have people who want to help you. So let them."

Mar'i blinked. Did she misjudge this boy earlier, either way he had he helped her and she would be lying if she said that she didn't feel slightly better. "Thank you."

"Whatever, now get out of my cave. It's lunch time, and everyone is probably wondering where you are." Damian beckoned his dog to follow him out of the cave while Mar'i took a second to register what she had just been told. She shook her head and followed the boy out. She watched as he easily flipped down to the ground below with ease and grace.

"Are you coming, Small Grayson. " He called up to her. She smiled and nodded before gently floating down. She wasn't even half way down when suddenly she started to fall. She tried to fly over and over again, but the power of flight never came to her and she continued to fall down to the ground below. Out fear of course she screamed. The sensation of falling was not one she was used to, or one she quite liked. She closed her eyes as the vision of the ground became closer. She was going to die. Die because she could not even do the simplest of Tamaranian techniques, flight. Maybe this was X'hal's punishment for Ryand'r's death. She would have thought this if she had hit the ground, but she didn't.

When Mar'i opened her eyes she was in the arms of Damian. He had saved her twice today.

"What the hell happened?" He growled "I thought you could fly!"

"I can!" She defended "Or I could."

Bruce who had spent all this time over at the computer was already over there, looking over Mar'i seeing if she was injured. "It's a good thing she didn't hit the ground. Nice catch, Damian." He took the girl from his son's arms and walked her over to the medical bay, "Damian, go upstairs tell Dick what happened, and bring him here."

"Yes, Father."

Bruce set Mar'i down, and began asking her questions, "What happened?"

"I don't know. My Powers..."

"Bruce!" Dick called as he ran down the steps into the Batcave, Damian two steps behind him.

"Over here!" He called back, "Now, do you know why your powers failed?"

Mar'i shook her head, "This has never happened before. I've always been able to fly." Mar'i assured.

"What happened?" Dick asked when he ran over to Mar'i. "Damian told me your powers failed."

"I don't know. I was flying, then I was falling."

"Was it your emotions. Your flight is controlled by your emotions."

"No, it wasn't that."

"Try flying again, Mar'i, not too high, but just enough we can see." Bruce said calmly.

"I'll try." Mar'i stood by and tried to propel herself into flight, but the feeling was feeling of turning ultraviolet radiation to flight energy was completely lost.

"I can't do it." Mar'i said. "I can't fly. What's happening to me?"

* * *

_Final Notes: _

_Final word count: 4646( I swear I tried to make it shorter!) _

_I am soo sorry about the wait, and the length. I usually post each day, but yesterday I was soo tired. Also the length I had a place I wanted to stop this chapter but to get there I had to write 4646 words! I'll try to post a chapter by tomorrow morning if I'm not dead tired or just being lazy. _

_Anyway the reason for my daily updates are that I want to get a lot of this story out before mid-July because that's when I have band camp and won't be able to write as much because of school. _

_Thanks to all my reviewers! I love you all, You guys are what keeps my muse up and running. And thanks to all the people who Follow and favorite my story you also give me great hope. _

_Please Review/Follow/Favorite, and keep my hungry muse feed! _

_Love, _

_ Miyu K. July 15, 2014 _


	4. Zero Year 4

**Chapter 4: Zero Year 4**

It had been agreed that whatever was happening to Mar'i was not affect her health as far as they knew. She was fine physically. Whatever was going on with her powers it was not life threatening it seemed. Dick understood they had to see someone about Mar'i's powers, but who on Earth knew Tamaranian biology and Human biology. There was only one person in the world who did, that person was Victor Stone, Cyborg.

Victor Stone, former member of the Teen Titans was now big shot Justice League member. He moved up in his years, actually climbing the ranks of the superheros in the league, now he was the leader of their Scientific Research department. He and a bunch of scientist helped the league by analyzing things for cases and creating inventions to help the average superhero on a day to day basis. Victor was living a good life. Dick hated to say this but he hadn't visited many people from his old Teen Titans days. He was still friends with them, and when he would see them on the Watch Tower or on some mission it was good to see them. But Dick admitted he hadn't been a good friend, he really should see them more often. Actually that was the of the things Babs always complained to him about. That he never checked in often enough, sometimes he would go months without talking to Babs and he would be in gotham the entire time.

When they arrived to the Watch Tower, Cyborg was surprised and pleased to see Nightwing, and of course he had offered to help in anyway possible. Mar'i was taken into testing immediately. Victor had his assistants take care of Mar'i while he himself talked to Nightwing about the situation.

"You say her powers are failing, correct?" Victor asked. "Are you sure she just wasn't in a bad emotional state? I seem to remember that holding Kory back a few times."

"She says that wasn't it, but honestly Mar'i doesn't know. She seems healthy but she can't fly. Sometimes she's able to hover a bit, but mostly she can't even get off the ground."

"That's weird." Victor commented. "Do you think it has to do with the mix of Tamaranian and Human DNA?"

"I thought that at first, too, but if it were she wouldn't be otherwise physically fine. Everything has turned out normal we've done scan after scan in the Batcave, but nothing has come up."

"So why come to me, you must realize I'm only going to do the same scans you did at the Batcave."

"You know more about Tamaranian biology. It could be a key factor that we can't see." Dick admitted. Usually when one of them was hurt, or something was wrong with them, they rarely look for outside help. Leslie is as about outside as it gets, but she was currently in Africa.

"I understand. I heard Kory just sprang Mary on you like that, I'm sorry." Cyborg apologized.

"What are you apologizing for, you had no way of knowing," Nightwing laughed. "It's fine. I've gotten over that now. It doesn't matter, Mary's here, and that's what matters."

"You're a good man, Dick. If I were I probably couldn't have handled it so easily." Cyborg said. "Now you saw it's just her flight that's gone, or going away?"

"Yes, we've checked her other powers. Starbolts are fine. Super strength is there, and you understand why we won't check the invulnerablilty. Other than that her superior sense are still fine. We're at a total lost, Victor."

"When the test come back in a few days I'll be able to tell what's wrong with her powers, till then I'm afraid you'll have play the waiting game." Victor said as Mar'i came out of testing.

"Thanks, Victor."

"No problems, man. If anything else changes before the test come back, bring her back in we may have missed something." Dick nodded, took his daughter by her hand took her home.

By the time they got to back to Gotham, Dick had decided that it may not be the best choice to go back to Blüdhaven at the moment. Mar'i had not said a word since she fell two days ago. She barely eat, not that she had eaten to be much to begin with. Maybe staying at the manor with everyone would help her? The moment they got back to the manor, Mar'i went straight up to the room Alfred had prepared for her, and didn't come down. Stephanie pleaded with the girl, but she refused to even open the door. Finally they gave up, realizing the girl only needed some alone time. What they did not know was that someone was checking on Mar'i. The only person that was willing to go into the room even though she didn't want them there, Damian.

Damian didn't care about what the girl thought of him. Honestly, he didn't care about her personal feelings or even her for that matter, but she mattered to Grayson, and that was really the only reason he was even bothering with the girl now.

"What are you doing in here?" She asked. Mar'i didn't even look at him only continuing to stare at the ceiling.

"Aren't you going to ask how I got in?" Damian asked.

"I'm not stupid, it was the window." Mar'i answered.

Damian smirked, "Close, but no." Mar'i looked up at him confused and he gestured at the vent, which cover was now barely hanging on by one screw.

"Whatever, why are you here, Damian? Don't locked doors mean anything to you?" She sneered

"No, not at all. You still haven't told your father about your uncle's death." He said. Mar'i noticed this wasn't a question, but a statement. "I thought I told you to tell him."

"I haven't had the time with the whole losing my powers situation."

"Bullshit. You have had time you just won't tell him, but let me tell you something, Small Grayson. You are a distraction, you distract him when he can't afford to be distracted. If he doesn't get his head in the game he might die, so you need to get your shit together. If something happens to him because he wasn't focused on the mission, I will personally blame you, Mar'i Grayson."

"Get out." Mar'i hissed, "Now." With a shrug Damian complied but before he left the way he came he turned back to Mar'i to say on final thing.

"You're scared, rightfully so, but in order to survive here with us, you have to get over that fear. And the only way to get over your fear is to break it wide open." Then as quickly as he came Damian vanished back into the vent. Mar'i wasn't sure if the boy wanted to help her or not.

* * *

It seems that emergencies tended to happen when you really not mentally prepared for them. Arkham was having another mass prison break, all gotham vigilantes were needed from Batman to The Question, and that meant Nightwing as well. Dick really wasn't on his game recently, but who could blame him, in a little over a week he had found out he had a daughter, and something was wrong with said daughter's powers, so yes Nightwing was a little off his game tonight.

"Watch out!" A soon as Batgirl said it, Nightwing ducked and back flipped kicked his would be attacker.

"Thanks, Batgirl."

"Where is your head tonight, Dick?!" on the comm in his ear Oracle was currently yelling at him.

"Sorry, I just got a lot on my mind." Nightwing admitted, flipping two more thugs into each other.

"I know, but we can't afford for you to be spacey." Oracle scolded.

"I know, I know. How many more left?"

"On your side? " Oracle asked. "About fifteen. By my estimate, you and Batgirl should be done in about 20 minutes. Then you can go help Red Robin and Huntress, They got stuck facing Killer Croc, and are a little fatigued with the rest of them."

"Alright." Nightwing said, "You got all of that, Batgirl." He called as he knocked out another thug.

"Every word."

"Good then let's finish up here."

* * *

"Alfred, I don't know how you do it." Mar'i said sitting at the Batcomputer.

"Do what, Miss Mary?" Alfred asked.

"Sit here, waiting and hoping that they all come back alright."

"With an extreme amount of patience, Miss. A very extreme amount." Alfred answered honestly.

"What was it like Bruce's first time out as Batman, were you worried?" Mar'i stared at the computer wishing she knew how to work it so she could listen in on their communications.

"Despite the fact, that Master Bruce had trained for years and years to be the man he is today, I worried. I still worry every night that he goes out that when I awake in the morning I will hear news of some villain who finally got lucky and killed the Batman. It still terrifies me to this day." Alfred answered handing the young girl a cup of tea.

"Alfred, do you maybe think that-"

"Hello, Alfred? Please tell me that you're at the computer." Mar'i looked over to the computer the once black screen now had a green symbol across it.

"Yes, Miss Gordon, I am here." Alfred pushed a button on the computer and answered.

"Great, this while go a lot faster now. Long story short, Batwoman and Black Canary were not able to contain Scarecrow. Canary got dosed with a healthy amount of his fear toxin, I usually have the antidote here, but I ran out after Batgirl and Robin's last encounter with him." She quickly. "I'm sending Lady Blackhawk to pick some up, she should be there in about seven minutes."

"Consider it done, Miss Gordon."

"Thank you, Alfred you're always a big help." With that the green symbol across the screen faded away, and alfred walked away to complete the task at hand.

"Alfred, Who was that?" Mar'i asked following him to the medical bay where the butler was looking through cabniets.

"That was the young Miss Barbara Gordon. She works as an information gather and master hacker for the superhero community, calls herself Oracle. She has been a great help all these years, and honestly we couldn't have done many things without her help."

"Okay, So she knows all about the computer, and things like that?"

"Yes, she does. She is probably the best in the world at what she does." Alfred answered Mar'i only nodded leaving the conversation there.

Two minutes later a black car pulled up into the batcave via waterfall entrance, and out stepped the blonde Lady Blackhawk.

"Thank ya, Alfred. I better get this back to the clocktower, Canary's supposed to be there in a few minutes. Poor batwoman had to sedate her to keep her from going crazy. Canary's not going to be happy when she comes to." Lady Blackhawk said taking the syringes from the butler.

"I wouldn't be either if I were her, Miss Blackhawk."

"I better get going. Thanks again, Alfred." The blonde pilot then hopped back into her car and sped away.

The butler turned back to the computer fully expecting the young princess to be standing right where he had left her, but found that she was not there. After extensive searching of the manor and the batcave alfred concluded that she was not on the grounds anymore.

"Oh dear, This can't be good at all."

* * *

"Hey! Let me go!" Cried Mar'i as she struggled against Lady Blackhawk's hold.

"Missy, I don't know who you are, or how ya got into the back of my car, but I'm gonna find out."

"Just let me go!" But Lady Blackhawk held tight to the girl's purple hoodie.

"Oracle, We've got a small issue." Lady Blackhawk said as she walked into the clocktower. In the clocktower was a computer with multiple screens, and at the computer was a red-headed woman in a wheelchair.

The woman spun around, "What happened? Did something happen to the- Is that a child?"

"Yes it is." Lady Blackhawk jerked the girl forward, "I found her in the back of my car when I pulled up here. I don't know where she came from though, I've only been here and the Batcave tonight."

Oracle wheeled closer, and got a good look at the girl, "It's okay I think I know her. You're Mary, aren't you?" The young girl said nothing only looking down at the ground. "Alright, if you want to be that way. Zinda, take the girl back to the batcave. " At this Mar'i looked up.

"No!"

"Ah, so you did want to come here on purpose." Oracle deduced. "Why are you here, Mary?"

"I just couldn't sit and wait." Mary answered.

"Umm can someone please tell me who this little girl is?" Lady Blackhawk asked. "And how she got in my car?"

"Zinda, this is Mary, Nightwing's daughter." Barbara introduced. Zinda looked alarmed.

"I didn't know he had a kid, specially not a what? Seven, eight year old."

"In all fairness." Mar'i interjected. "He didn't know about me until recently." Comprehension lite up on Zinda's face. "I snuck in your car when you were talking to Alfred. I'm sorry but I had to meet you, and this was the quickest way possible."

"You could have just waited till tomorrow." Oracle said. "Your father and I are good friends."

"Yeah, real good friends." Lady Blackhawk said under her breath. Oracle ignored her comment and continued.

"Why did you feel the need to come here, Mary?"

"I can't sit and wait anymore. I should be out there helping them." Mar'i said.

Barbara made face, "You sound like your father, and you're much too young to be going out there." Barbara said returning to her computer.

"Damian's out there." Mar'i argued.

"Damian is two years older than you, not to mention he has been trained his whole life for this stuff." Oracle put on her headset. "Oracle to Batwoman, what's your status."

"Trying to get Black Canary out of here. Having a little more trouble than I thought I would have." A voice from the computer said.

"Do you need back up?" Oracle asked.

"No, it just might take a while to get Canary there." Batwoman said.

"Alright, Tell me if anything changes." Oracle then turned back to Mar'i.

"I've had training, too." Mar'i said.

"Yeah training, while you had your powers." Oracle said. Mary looked at her with wide eyes. "Yes, I do know about that. Right now with your powers the way they are, and us not knowing why they are giving out it could do more hurt than help to send you out. "

"You're right. I can't go out there, " Barbara looked at the girl in surprise. "but that doesn't mean I can't help out from here. I've heard about what you do, you can still help while not being physically out there. I want you to teach me to do what you do." Both Zinda and Barbara gave looks of surprise this time.

"You want me to teach you?"

"I know I'm asking a lot because I haven't been on Earth very long, and I have a lot of catching up to do, but I promise to work hard if you give me the chance, and I will-"

"Yes." Barbara cut the young babbling princess off.

"Wait, what?"

"Yes. I will teach you, but you have to promise me you won't pull off a crazy stunt like the one you did tonight. That was very dangerous what if Zinda had been heading to Arkham?" Mar'i said nothing, "You could have been killed, and how can I face your dad if something happened to you under my watch. So, if I'm to teach you, no more crazy stunts, you need to be sensible."

"I promise." Mar'i swore.

"Good. Meet me tomorrow from two till five." Mar'i nodded. "Good now, Zinda,-"

"Oracle, this is Batman. Arkham is clear. Canary should be there in five minutes." Mar'i smiled at the gruff voice she knew.

"Alright, I'm ready for her. Who's still missing?" Oracle asked.

"The Riddler, Bane, Poison Ivy, Harley Quinn, Two-Face, and Scarecrow. Joker, Penguin, Black Mask, Killer Croc, and Mr. Freeze have been accounted for."

"Wow, there's a first. Harley and Ivy won't be a problem for a while, Ivy's smart she'll lay low for a couple months. Bane will lay low, too. Most likely get out of the country. Two-Face is really the only one we're going to really have to watch out for because Riddler will only stick his head out if it interest him."

"Alright, I'm going to be taking some of the injured back to the Batcave, then heading back out for patrol. Maybe catch some of the small fry we missed."

"Call if you need anything." Oracle said. There was only a grunt as a response.

"Oracle, We're here!" called Batwoman from the stairs. Coming up the steps was a passed out Black Canary being held up by Batwoman and Nightwing. At the sight of Barbara Nightwing flashed her, that smile of his before setting Canary on the table.

"I heard from Alfred that I had something here to pick up." Nightwing said eyeing his daughter. she hide from his gaze behind Oracle.

"It's okay, I already chewed her out about how stupid and dangerous that was. Take her home it's been a long night, I'll see you two tomorrow." Barbara wheeled away to go help Black Canary, while the Grayson walked out of the clocktower.

"Dad," Mar'i called. "I think I have something I need to tell you." She said finally.

"Well, I'm all ears." He said giving his full attention to his daughter.

"On Tamaran, the day of the Gordanian attack, it was me and Ryand'r flying and..."

* * *

Three days had passed faster than both Dick and Mar'i would have ever thought. With Oracle's lessons, and staying at the manor the days had passed rather quickly. Mary's nightmares weren't as bad after she told her father about them. He had been supporting and understanding, even offering to tell his own tragic tale. The story of how his parents died, and that sometimes he still gets nightmares about that told Mar'i that he wanted to teach her all the acrobatics he knew when they figured out what was wrong with her powers, and that when Haly's circus came back in town how he was going to introduce her to everyone there, and he would take her flying on the trapeze. In those three days Mar'i and her father became unbelievably close, maybe Hal was right. Just give it sometime,and everything will turn out alright.

"The results, Victor?" Dick asked. Praying this phone call wouldn't bring bad news.

"She's perfectly fine." Victor said. "Everything came back in order. Healthwise, she's alright." Dick let out a breath he didn't even know he was holding.

"Okay, and her powers?"

"Well, according to what I've got here, it just seems to be that she's outgrowing them." Victor said.

"What? What do you mean outgrowing them?!"

"It's kind of like how a child out grows Asthma." Victor explained. "How don't know long it will take but Mary's powers are all going to start to fade away a little at a time."

"And will she ever get them back?" Dick asked.

"I don't know, only time will be able to tell." Victor said.

"Thanks, Vic, you've been a lot of help."

"Anytime. If there are any changes in her health call me, I help her out as much as I can. "

"Alright, thanks again. Goodbye." And Dick hung up the phone.

"So my powers are just going to fade away?" Mar'i asked.

"Looks that way." Dick answered honestly.

"And I might not get them back?"

"I'm so sorry, Starshine." Dick Pulled the young girl into a hug.

"Starshine?" Mar'i echoed "I didn't know you knew what my name meant. Mother used to call me that all the time. I don't even know if she's okay."

"Have faith in her." Dick said. "If anyone can bet the Gordanians, it would definitely be your mother. If it were me I would be able to beat an entire army just to have you back, so have faith, and everything will turn out alright."

* * *

_Final Notes: _

_Word count: 3571( not as long as the last chapter!)_

_Honestly, this was probably my least favorite chapter to write, but it needed to be done. Actually a lot of the stuff I wanted to do was cut out from the final draft, I might do them later, or not. _

_Special thanks to Victory Goddess, whose review was what got me through this chapter! You're Awesome, dude! _

_Don't forget to Favorite/Follow/ Review, and feed my muse. I won't stop writing if I don't get any, but it helps the process and makes me know you're reading!_

_Love always, _

_ Miyu K. ~June 17, 2014 _


	5. Zero Year 5

**Chapter 5: Zero Year 5 **

Two Months, that was the amount of time it took for everything to change. In two months everything had changed. In two months Dick had lost his job at the police force, In two months they had moved to Gotham, and in two months Mar'i had lost all of her powers. After flight it was her star bolts, and after those it was her super strength, and with her powers went her all green eyes. It was a little poetic, the one thing on her that didn't look human left her when she practically became human. The only thing she had was the superior senses, she could see a little farther, and hear a little better than most humans.

Mar'i and her father moved into a loft in downtown Gotham near Wayne Tower, but still Mar'i ended up at the manor on a daily basis. Her father luckily got a job at with the Gotham P.D. Despite his truancy, Blüdhaven P.D only had good things to say about Dick, also it helped that Dick was good friends with the commissioner. So during the day before Dick went to work he would drop Mar'i at the manor, apparently she needed a babysitter, not that she thought she needed one. And from the mansion she went to the the clocktower, where Oracle showed her everything from how to work a computer, to how to hack into a bank account. Mar'i decided the day she told her father about Ryand'r it was the last day she would ever let something hold her back like that. Instead, Mar'i focused on getting to know the planet she was currently on, and Stephanie loved to help her out.

Oh, the television shows and movies that Stephanie made the girl watch. She said that was because she needed to learn the culture, and that the only way was to watch these movies and tv shows. From teenage Vampire romances to dystopian future zombie movies, all of them in Stephanie made Mar'i watch. And on her own Mar'i read, she read more than one would think capable of reading. The pure look of happiness on her face when Bruce showed her the Library was almost too much to believe. Bruce doesn't believe he's ever seen a child that happy to read books. The Library in the manor was massive and held books from Dr. Suess to the Count of Monte Cristo, now whenever Dick picked up Mar'i at night she would have a new book.

On his days off and after work before patrol Dick taught his daughter acrobatics. In a week Mar'i had her Back-hand Spring down. In another she had both front and back tuck down. By the end of the two months Mar'i knew and perfected moves that only Dick knew and could, one of them being the Quadruple Somersault. All the while Mar'i grew frustrated, her father was teaching her many things but was not even discussing what she really wanted to do.

"I'm not surprised." Barbara said during one of their sessions "Your dad can be very thick at times."

"At times? Most of the time." Huntress said, walking into the clock tower.

"Helena, really?" Barbara said.

"Of course, to this day he has no idea why I refuse to get that pizza with him." Huntress said taking a seat next to Mar'i. Mar'i had meet Helena a few weeks ago, Tim had introduced her as someone who was like family, but only around at random times. According to Alfred, Bruce does recognize her as one of his protégés, but for some reason he doesn't tell her that, but whenever she needs something Bruce is there.

"So, what do you need Captain Oblivious to know?" Helena asked.

"I want him to start training me." Mar'i sighed .

Huntress whistled, "Now that's a big one. For all we know he might not even want to train you, or for you to get involved at all."

"He should know that if he's involved that I'm going to be. I mean did he let Bruce get away with that!" Mar'i said. "Barbara, you understand why I want to do this, right? All of you are risking something, I'm the only one who's a burden, and not pulling my own weight. It's time I start at least training. Then after a little while he can let me come out with him. I mean, I really want to, but I get the feeling he wouldn't want me to be out there. I would be more useful out instead of being here doing nothing, and I-"

"Mary, you're rambling again, but you're right, I'm sure Canary and I can train you." Helena said. "We did train Stephanie."

"Not without her dad's permission, Helena." Babs shut down the idea quickly. "Mar'i, honestly it's going to be hard because honestly I know your dad won't want you anywhere near this life. I wouldn't want my daughter getting into this, but if you can get your dad to agree to let someone train you, then we can train you here."

* * *

The idea was nice, but Mar'i knew her father wouldn't agree. They had never talked about it, but she was sure he would still say no. Mar'i sighed as she sat in the manor, it was almost time for her dad to be getting home. He didn't have patrol tonight, and said he had a surprise for her, obviously she didn't know what it was, and her dad had gone to great lengths to keep it from her.

Mar'i had hoped that they were going to go somewhere, with her eyes the way they were it was hard to let her go out, but now they didn't have that issue, she had normal green eyes now, and she still hadn't seen a movie in the movie theater. There was a lot of things that she still hadn't gotten to see, but she had read about them at least.

"Mar'i, Come here I've got something for you!" Right on time, her father was home. Mar'i set her book on the table next to her, then ran down the stairs to greet her father.

"You're back!" She screamed as she hugged him. "How was work? Did you fight some criminals? Did you arrest someone? Was it a real criminal, like Riddler or Cluemaster? Did you get hurt? Did someone hurt you? If you're hurt what about the surprise? Please, tell me you didn't get hurt. I Don't think I could handle that after Jason got shot in the arm last month. Are you going to at least tell me the surprise if you're hurt and we can't go. Is it a movie? I hope it's a movie? You know I haven't been to one yet." Dick sighed at the mile that just came out from his daughters mouth. It was moments like this that he was reminded that she was really his daughter. When Mar'i first got here she was so serious and quiet. She had this look on her face sometimes that he was sure was the exact same face Kory had when she wasn't too pleased with him. Hal did say she had his mouth, but honestly he hadn't started to see that until recently. It had taken her at least twice as long to get used to him as it did Hal, but honestly in that time a lot happened, at least she was comfortable with him now.

"Work was fine." He laughed. "Yes, I did arrest someone. No, it wasn't someone like the Riddler. It was for public intoxication, and just because someone isn't on the criminal A-list doesn't mean they aren't criminals."

"I know." She said. "I was just hoping it was someone interesting." She rocked back and forth on her heels as she smiled at him. "Alright, so surprise?"

"Well, This is the first part." For the first time Mar'i noticed that in his hand was a garment bag. He handed it her and motioned for her to open it. When she zipped it open inside was a beautiful satin purple dress with a black sequins band around the waist and a purple bow on the hip. Also inside of the garment bag was a decent sized black bow for her hair, and black gloves for the winter.

"Wow, Daddy, it's beautiful, but I don't have anywhere to wear it to." Mar'i said. Examining the dress, "You remembered that I liked bows." She said as she picked up the bow, and felt it's soft satin and lace.

"I couldn't forget, you do where something in your hair every day. Even when you don't go out." Dick said smiling done at the young girl as she kept looking the dress over. "Also that's the next part of the surprise. Go shower, and get dressed. I'm taking you out tonight." Mar'i squealed in excitement before running up the stairs

"Wait! Wait!" Mar'i yelled as she ran back down the stairs, "I don't have shoes to go with this!"

"I've got you covered, Starshine." Dick handed Mar'i a shoebox, and her smile grew even larger.

"Thank you, daddy." Mar'i motioned for him to lean down, and she gave him a kiss on the cheek before running back up the stairs to get ready.

Dick however remained frozen in the same spot, hand touching the cheek his daughter just kissed.

"What's wrong, Dickface, growing sentimental in your old age?" Jason teased leaning against the wall.

Dick was too happy to even pay attention to his younger brother's teasing remark. Dick just went upstair to get ready for the night ahead himself.

* * *

"This isn't your car. Whose car is this? This car is too nice to be your car, Daddy. Not that your car isn't nice it just isn't this nice. So who's car is it really?" Mar'i said as they drove through Downtown Gotham.

"For the last time, Mar'i this is my car." Dick sighed. She had been at this for the passed 15 minutes.

"No it's not. I've seen your car."

"Yes, it is. I have more than one car, you know."

"Then how come I've never seen it?" Mar'i questioned.

"Okay, This car was a birthday present from Bruce. Though it's likely Alfred had bought it with Bruce's money, because Brue tends to forget about birthdays."

"He does?" Mar'i asked with wide eyes, "Isn't that kinda bad?"

"It's horrible." Dick agreed. "One year, he just plain forgot it was Tim's birthday. I think that was the year or the year after he adopted Tim, either way he had to have known when Tim's birthday was. So the day came and Alfred didn't speak to him all day, finally when Tim came home from school and went down to the Batcave to help Bruce with a case. Tim didn't even say anything till Alfred came downstairs with a birthday cake. Bruce apologized, but boy did Alfred let him have it. To this day Bruce makes sure that he checks to see when one of our birthdays are coming."

Mar'i giggled. "That sounds like Alfred, but can you really blame Bruce? He is really busy."

"I've never forgotten a birthday, and I work just as much as he does." Dick said with pride.

"That's good to know. So, I can ask you when everyone's birthday is."

"Yup, I know everyone's birthday. Tim and Jason are summer babies. Damian's was born in april. And Bruce and Babs in February. Okay, actually Bruce remembers Barbara's birthday because it's the day before his." Mar'i giggled as they pulled up to their destination.

"Kane Theater?" Mar'i read. "Like a movie theater, or a play theater?" Mar'i asked.

"A play theater, but we aren't seeing a play." Dick stopped the car got out and handed the keys to the valet.

"It's good to have you back in town, Mr. Grayson." The valet said as Dick opened the passenger door to let Mar'i out. When she got out she was amazed. Crystal chandeliers, and a red carpet, women in elegant gowns, and the men looking dashing in tuxedos and suits, and the cameras were flashing bright lights danced out capturing every moment the gotham socialites did.

"Woah, what is all this?" Mar'i asked.

"This is the annual Gotham Showing of the _Nutcracker. _It's a ballet they show every year around Christmas time. Bruce took me once as a kid. He hated it, but I loved it. I've been coming every year since. "

"Oh wow." Mar'i said taking in her surroundings.

"I thought you might like it. Most of gotham's elite show up, but surprisingly not a lot of paparazzi. I thought this was a good opportunity to introduce you to our other world before you start school next semester and the paparazzi are following you around." Dick said over the clicking of the cameras.

"What was that all about?" Mary asked once the we're inside the building.

"Paparazzi, they like to take picture of famous people for money. Come on, our seats are in the balcony." They climbed the theater stairs up, and were lead by an usher to their seats. They were supposed to be alone in the balcony instead found a woman of short black hair occupying one of the four seats.

"Selina?" Dick asked. Yes, it had to be Selina because in her lap was was a cat, Selina's cat, Isis. "What are you doing here?"

"What can I say, Isis loves the ballet. I heard you had booked balcony seats, and I couldn't help myself. This is my favorite time of year." She said as she petted the cat on her lap. "So is that her?" Selina asked. "The big man told me a little about her. He was right she is gorgeous."

"Mary, this is Selina. She's Bruce's... Girlfriend?" Selina snorted.

"If that's the right word for it." Mary didn't greet Selina like she did others instead her gaze was fixed upon the cat in Selina's lap. "This is Isis, do you want to hold her?" Selina asked.

Mary's head jerked up. "Could I?" Selina nodded and handed the cat to the young girl. The cat immediately took a liking to mar'i.

"Wow, she likes you. She just doesn't like anyone you know. Isis is real picky about the people she likes, she'll let anyone pet and hold her, but you can tell who she really likes. "

"I love cats. Damian has one, but he never lets me play with Alfred says I'll spoil him." Mar'i said sitting down to play with the cat.

"Then I'll visit often. Cat lovers should help each other out, right?" Selena said. Mary's head nodded in agreement. "Have you seen a ballet before, Kitten?" Selina asked. Ma'i shook her head. "Oh then you'll love this. Look the show is starting."

In twenty minutes Mar'i was in love. The dancing was quite mesmerizing, she loved the fluidity of the motions, the grace of the dancers and the beautiful music. She couldn't get enough. It was amazing how they told a story through now words, no lyrics, only movements. By the end Mar'i was sure she would love going to the ballet then going to see a movie. The movements didn't seem hard, in fact Mar'i was sure if she learned she could do it.

"Did you enjoy it?" Selina asked at the end of the ballet.

"Oh very much so! I adored it. I've never seen anything so spectacular in my entire life. Daddy, can we seen another?" Mar'i asked.

"Sure, I'll look up when the ballet is in town again."

"Thank you thank you!" She said. "Selina, thank you for letting me hold Isis the entire time." She handed the women back the cat.

"Selina." Dick said. "WHy don't you come by the manor later tonight? I'm sure Bruce would love to see you." Selina gave Dick a weird look, who only stared at her in return.

"Okay, I'll be there. I've got some things to take care of first, but make sure you tell the big man."

"We will. See you later, Selina." Dick said.

"Goodbye, Selina." Mar'i called out as the woman walked out. Selina only waved a hand in response. "I like her, she's really nice." Mar'i commented.

"Most of the time." Dick said under his breathe. He gathered the 8 year old up in his arms and together they left the theatre.

* * *

Mar'i licked her ice cream cone. "The ballet, and ice cream in one night? What's going on? Why are you being so nice tonight?" Mar'i asked. They were on their way back to the Manor. It was about seven O'clock, and Mar'i said she wanted to go back to the manor to tell Stephanie all about the ballet.

"I'm always nice to you." Dick said evenly. "What I can't do something nice for you once in a while?" Mar'i narrowed her eyes, but softened her gaze.

"Well, I guess you can." she said finishing off her ice cream.

They pulled up to the manor, and Mar'i dashed out of the car. "Hey do you think Tim or jason will go with us next time?" Mar'i asked.

"Tim maybe. Jason definitely not, he's hated stuff like this since he was twelve. Stephanie would defiantely go with you next year, if her classes let her."

"You think?" Mar'i asked

"I do." Dick then opened the door and they were greeted by the of Kazoos and other party whistles.

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MARY!" Mar'i jumped in surprise. What? She almost couldn't compute what was going on, But everyone was there from Bruce to Helena wishing her a happy birthday, and the thing was she had forgotten today would be her birthday. Well forget isn''t the right word. Days run differently on Tamaran so it was hard to keep track of how they corresponded with earth days. Mar'i admitted she really hadn't thought of it, but who would in her situation.

Mar'i blinked, "How did you know today would be my birthday?" She asked. "Even I didn't know."

"It wasn't me." her father admitted. "It was your mother. Kory put the day your birthday would be on earth in the letter she wrote to me when you came here. She must have done the math."

"Come on, Mar'i. You look like you need cake." Stephanie plucked the girl from her father's side and steered her over to the table of cake.

"Don't forget presents. " Jason added.

"We all agreed, that since this is your first year on earth, we should let your birthday be extra special." Tim said.

"We've been planning this for about two weeks." Barbara said. "I'm not going to lie. I almost spilled the beans, but Helena covered for me."

"I sure did. Happy Birthday, Mary. You earned it." Helena said with a smile.

"Great!" Stephanie yelled "Now let's all eat cake before we have to patrol tonight. I want a nice sugar rush while I'm kicking criminal butt."

"Sounds like a nice idea, Brown." Jason agreed.

"You can't even go on patrol, Todd." Damian reminded, "You got shot in the arm two weeks ago."

"I've kicked ass with less." Jason said.

"No, you won't." Bruce said giving a scolding glare to the younger man. Jason pouted and glared at the young Damian.

"Come on, Mar'i. Don't pay them any attention." Tim said. He sat her down in a seat and handed her a gift carefully wrapped in silver paper. "Open my present first. You'll love it."

Mar'i opened the gift, and on the inside was seven book, a series of books actually titled Harry Potter.

"I noticed how much you like to read." Tim said. "And I also noticed you seem to enjoy the fantasy one's more than the other, so here is one of the best stories known to man, Harry Potter."

"Thank you, Tim." Mar'i said. Jason snorted.

"You would give the kid something boring like books, Drake. Let me show you a real gift." Jason rolled in his gift. It was a blue and silver scooter. "I tweaked with it a little. Now, it goes much faster than all the others they sell in the store." Jason grinned.

"Should I even ask how fast." Dick said. Jason just looked at him. "I guess not."

"My turn! My turn! My turn!" Stephanie pushed around the crowd to get to the young princess. "This is a music player. You can download all the games and music you want on here, everything will be charged to Tim's card so thank him for two gifts!" A shout from Tim went ignored. "And a cute pair of purple headphones to match. I do love a girl who loves purple." Stephanie handed the items to the girl and dashed off before Tim could get to her.

Alright, I guess I'll go." Barbara wheeled forward. "You're going to need your own Laptop for school, so I bought you one. I played with it a little, you won't get any viruses, and unless someone with skills better than mine tries to hack it, you shouldn't be hacked."

"Thanks, Babs." Mar'i said with a smile she did want her own computer.

"Mary," Helena started. "I noticed that you have your ears pierced yet you don't wear any earrings. It is my firm belief that a female of any age who has their ears pierced must have at least one pair of diamond Earrings, and these, my dear, are your's." Helena handed a little velvet box to Mar'i inside were diamond earrings in the shape of two little stars.

"Wow, way to show us all up, Helena!" Stephanie called from the floor where Tim had tackled her and now held her in a headlock.

"Please." Helena said with a flip of her hair. "We haven't even gotten to Bruce yet." Every nodded sheepishly in agreement. Whatever he was going to give the girl was going to be more expensive then all of their gifts combined.

"Damian, your turn." Jason called as he pushed his little brother forward.

"Here. Mini Grayson, it isn't much." He handed her a wooden box that wasn't even so much as wrapped. Inside was about fifty butterfly shapped throwing stars. The were all black or silver, and very beautiful.

"I don't know what to say, Thank you." Mar'i said. "but I don't know how to throw them." Damian snorted.

"That's easy to amend. I'll just teach you."

"Why is giving lethal weapons as a gift a norm in this family?" Dick cradled his head in his hands. "We were almost normal."

"Don't cry, Dickface." Jason said with a pat on the back. "Don't you realize we'll never be normal."

Dick sighed, "Bruce just go. I can't right now. I'm so done."

"...I really don't see the issue, but okay." Before Bruce could give her the present the doorbell rang. Bruce raised an eyebrow, "Who could that be?" Bruce went to go answer the door and was greeted by the sharp green eyes of Selina Kyle.

"Selina!"

"Heard you were having a party. Seems my invite was lost in the mail, don't worry Dick took care of it." She kissed the cheek of the man before her then strutting into the room, hips swaying.

"Hey, Selina." "I didn't know you were coming." Was the general consensus.

"I heard it was someone's birthday, so I ran home and got a gift that I knew she would love. " She knelt down in front of Mar'i reached into her handbag and pulled out a small grey and white kitten with green eyes. "Happy 9th birthday, Mary."

"OMIGOD!" Mar'i squealed as she plucked the kitten from selina's hands. "Thank you, Selina. Just one question I just meet you today how did you know it was my birthday?"

"Well, your dad told me on the sly. You were right there I'm surprised you didn't notice. He did a real good job not tipping you off, that hint was so vague I almost missed it."

"Okay, that clears up my confusion." Bruce said. "You were at the ballet. Good intentions I hope."

Selina grinned a toothy grin, "Baby, I always have good intentions, but we can talk later. Right now is about, Mary." Selina turned back to girl. "So what are you going to name him?"

"It's a boy then...Hmm." Mary pondered for a moment. "I'm going to name him, Hal!" Mar'i said once she decided on a name. "He looks like a Hal."

"You're going to name your cat after Green Lantern?" Tim asked.

"Without Hal I couldn't have even had this cat, or even know all of you besides. The green eyes on this kitty scream Hal. I have to name him that."

"Okay Mar'i, but you have to take care of the cat." Dick said.

"Oh I promise!"

"Good, Bruce I believe it's time for your gift." Dick said.

Bruce fished around his pocket and pulled out a phone and handed it to the girl, "It's the newest generation smartphone. When you need an upgrade tell me I'll get you a new one."

"Huh and I thought Bruce was going to beat us all in the gift department." Jason said. "Looks like I win for best gift."

"No, you don't." Stephanie said. "If anyone won It's either Barbara or Helena."

"Not so fast." Selena said. "Mary, can I see the phone for a minute." Mary nodded and handed the phone to the woman. "God Bruce!" Selena said in shock.

"What, Selena?" Jason said.

"This smartphone has been on my christmas list for a long time now. It's a gold and diamond encrusted smartphone. Made by one of my favorite Jewelers, the home button alone has about 6.6 carats of diamond, the corners of the phone are white gold, and there are approximately 138 diamonds around the edge. All together I believe this phone cost about 2.4 million dollars." Jaws dropped as Selena finished.

Jason threw his hands in the air, "That's it. I'm done." And he just walked out.

"Why?" was all stephanie could manage to say.

"Actually the one I wanted to get her was actually about 15 million, but they couldn't get it here on time so I just settled for that one. I thought it was cute enough for a little girl."

"My god." Helena whispered. "Batman just said the word cute." She whispered to Barbara, but only received a pointed glare from the dark knight himself.

"Wow thanks Bruce." Mar'i said as she took the phone back from Selena.

"Yeah thanks, Bruce." Dick spat. "Now my gift is going to look crappy."

"What? It's only like 2 million?"

"Don't even." Dick said with a sigh. "Now Mar'i, my gift isn't as overly extravagant as Bruce's but it was a lot of meaning. " He dropped a gold necklace into his daughter hand. "This necklace was my mother's. It's birds flying out of a cage. My mother always said if there was one thing she taught me, its was to be free, and be myself. Now I hope I can teach you the same thing."

Mar'i pulled her dad into a hug, "Thank you, daddy. I love it. I'll wear it everyday." She pulled her long black hair up for him to put the necklace on her.

"Thank you all for the wonderful gifts. I don't think I could have survived here without each and everyone of you." Mar'i said. "On Tamaran you usually do not see such kindness unless it's from your own family."

"Hey, we are your family," Jason said coming back into the room.

"Yeah, we might not be related, but we are family." Tim said. "We had the hardest time getting Damian to understand that. Don't tell me you're going to be the same way, too."

"Yup, if there's one thing you can count on it's us to be there for you." Stephanie said. "I can't count how many times Bruce, Dick, Tim, Jason, and even Damian have dropped whatever it is they're doing to help me out, and I would do it for them in a heart beat."

"Thanks, really. Thank you all."

* * *

"Daddy," Mar'i called out she was about to go to sleep and Dick had come in to check on her. "Can I ask you for something before you go out on patrol?'

"Sure, anything." Dick said.

"Daddy, I'm tired of being helpless, and a burden to you all. I wasn't going to ask this but the party changed my mind. Dad, I want you to train me to be your partner, like the robin to your batman. I want to be out there helping you." Dick froze. He wasn't going to lie, he knew this day was coming. He just didn't expect it to be here so quickly. He remembered being in her shoes, asking Bruce to be able to help him, and Bruce never said he wanted him out there but still supported him being out there. Now that it was with his own child, his daughter, Dick didn't really like the sound of her fighting side by side with him in a kevlar outfit similar to his own. In fact he didn't like the idea at all.

"Mar'i, I'm going to be honest about this. I don't want you in that kind of life. I don't want you anywhere near it, in fact."

"But-" Mar'i tried to protest but she was cut off.

"No buts, we'll talk later." And Dick left the room. Mar'i had the feeling that even if they did talk later he father would not be changing his mind.

* * *

After making sure everyone was out on patrol Mar'i wandered down to the Batcave, and found Jason working in the gym.

"Hey, Stella." Jason called from the bench press. "I thought you were asleep." Jason always preferred to call her by her middle name. He was the one to choose it after all.

"I had too much on my mind." Mar'i admitted to her uncle.

"Sounds like you need a good sparring session. What do you say, Little Star? How about a spar?" Jason asked.

"I don't know. I haven't fought since I had my powers."

"Then this is a good time to see where you stand. Come on let's go." Jason walked over to the sparing mat and got in a good steady position. Mar'i got ontot he mat as well. "You attack first." Jason said. Mar'i nodded and jumped into a punch, but Jason caught her elbow with ease stopping it.

"You attacking like you still have powers, "He said. "Had you had your super strength, then you probably could have gotten away with that." Jason let go of the girl's elbow. "Again." he ordered. This time She spun into a roundhouse kick which he caught again and flipped her onto the mat. Mar'i recovered quickly using all her arm strength pushed of the floor aiming a kick to Jason's chest which he side stepped.

"Good, now you're thinking." He said. "Again." Mar'i threw her elbow at him as expected he caught it. She then kicked at his side, which he caught as well. He flipped her again though instead landing on her face again. Mar'i used the flip to throw herself into a front handspring and landed in front of Jason. He smiled at her as she jumped into the air in order to kick him, but the attempt failed as he just side stepped her again.

"That's enough." Jason said. "You're really good for a novice." He praised.

"What are you talking about I couldn't even touch you."

"Yeah, but I've trained most of my life so people wouldn't be able to touch me." Jason said as he helped her off the ground. "I can see Kory trained you a little, but not enough. Honestly, if it wasn't for your pure natural talent, and you acrobatic ability that short fight would have ended long ago."

"Natural talent?" Mar'i echoed.

"Yup, honestly Dick should start you training immediately, " Jason said. "You were born with his natural talent for fighting. Getting it down won't be as hard for you as it was for me when I first became Robin. "

"Too bad, He says he won't train me." Mar'i said with a pout.

"Your dad is a moron. Not using such potential would be a waste. Not using you in the field would be a big fat waste. If he knows what's good for him he'll train you." Jason said.

Mar'i sighed. "I've already asked. He said we'll talk later, which is a translation for nope." Mar'i sat down on the ground. "I want to be able to help you all out there, but if he won't train me I'll only keep being a burden."

"Then how bout I train you." Jason said. Mar'i jerked her head towards him. "Yeah, I could train you."

"But what about my dad?" Mar'i asked. She was all for anything if she got to help everyone out.

Jason smirked, "I guess we better keep it a secret then." Mar'i smiled. This could actually work.

* * *

_Final Notes: _

_Final word count: 5828 _

_I am so fucking sorry. Firstly I'm sorry that this chapter took me 3 friggin days to write. I won't lie I was procrastinating. Secondly, I want to apologize for this shit long chapter. I honestly never wanted this chapter to be this long, but I wanted to end it with Jason agreeing to train Mar'i and in order to get there, all of that other stuff had to happen. Honestly, I ended up taking a lot out of this chapter. I originally wanted Mar'i and her father the day after her birthday go see haly's circus, but by the time I got to the point I wanted to write that I was at about 4000 words. I also edited out a lot of the random talking and character cameos. Vicki Vale had a cameo I was forced to take out, but honestly it wasn't needed. _

_Thanks again to Victory Goddess for her lovely review, and to random guest who just said, and I quote, "MOOOOOOOOOOORE". You two have my love eternally. _

_Don't forget to Favorite/Follow/Review. Like always it feeds my muse, and helps me work! _

_P.S next chapter is the last of this arc, which if you couldn't guess is titled Zero Year. Next arc Mar'i really gets to work, gets a life of her own outside of her family, and makes her way as a vigilante of Gotham. _

_Love always, _

_ Miyu K. ~June 20, 2014 _


	6. End of Zero Year

_**Flashbacks= Bold and Italics**_

_Authors note/Final thoughts= Italics _

* * *

**Chapter 6: End of Zero Year**

"You're doing well. These past six months you've progressed farther than I could have imagined." Jason said as he spared with Mar'i. "Have you been reading your files?"

"Of course." Mar'i aims a punch at his face, unlike before when she just started training, Jason is barely able to dodge this one. Jason duck and swipes a kick under her feet which she neatly jumps over, and flips over Jason. She's now on his back swings back and flips them both to the ground.

"Good, Let's see. Tell me the weaknesses and Strengths of the heros I call out. Wonderwoman." Jason climbs back to his feet, and kicks at the girl still on the ground. At last minute she rolls away.

"Good tactician, her powers, and lifelong training. She also has a lot of experience. Weakness, She can be bound by her own lasso, and she loses her powers if her hands are bound by a man." Mar'i flips up. Right hooks Jason in the face. He grabs her arms and holds them, but before he can flip her Mar'i jumps and kicks him in the gut.

"Green Arrow." He said while rubbing his stomach.

"Could kill you if he has his bow and arrows, but that's also his greatest weakness. He relies too much on it, without them he's about as easy a takedown as common purse snatcher." Mar'i said giving her mentor time to rest.

"Batman."

Mar'i froze for a fraction of a second giving Jason the chance to elbow her in the chest, "Don't hesitate!" He shouted at her.

"Batman is probably the hardest of all heros to take down. While he has no powers, his superior intellect and use a gadgetry has made one of the most powerful superheroes of all time. Strengths, His mind, his stamina, training in the martial arts and other fighting techniques, not to mention his perfect aim with batarangs. Weaknesses, Batman is human meaning he can be killed with something as simple as a stab wound or poison, but he's made sure that those can't hurt him a majority of the time. It's best to catch him off guard, and in order to do that psychological warfare is necessary. Reminding him of his past failures, like the death of his parents, his former addiction to venom, or...The death of the second Robin are enough to catch the man off guard and can be used to overpower him." Jason smiled at the girl.

"Good. That's enough. Damian's been working on your marksmanship, right?"

"Yup, just like he promised he's been helping me."

"How far have you come?" He asked. In response Mar'i threw a black and silver butterfly thrower just past his ear and meeting the training dummy in it's head. "So pretty far." He answered his own question.

"When can I go out into the field?" Mar'i asked with hopeful eyes.

"Actually you're more than ready to go out, but if you do you know you're dad would be pissed." Jason rolled his eyes. "Sometimes your dad can be such a dick."

"Hahaha." Mar'i laughed sarcastically. "That's so funny and original. I'm dying of laughter." Jason frowned.

"You know I think spending time with me has caused you to pick up my sarcasm." Jason said sadly. "You used to be so polite."

"Well Stephanie did say you guys were going to get that out of me." Mar'i said retrieving her butterfly thrower form the

"You act like we've corrupted you." Jason said with a slight wince, Six month ago the girl had a lot less sass. She was still chatty, but now she would slip a sly little comment in.

Mar'i thought for a moment, "Yeah that sounds about right." She said with a cheeky grin not unlike her father's. Jason gave the girl a slight nudge

"Whatever, come on we're practicing your shooting-." Jason was cut off by the loud ringing of Mary's phone.

"Crap. Sorry, Jason. I have to go to dance practice. " Mar'i glanced down at her watch. Six o'clock. Practice started in thirty minutes. In January, she started taking Ballet lessons. Like her training she progressed fast and well. She started with only ballet, now she was part of her dance school's competitive. She wouldn't lie she had help to get where she was. She had a tiny Jason to help her with her dancing and his name was Kevin Jackson.

* * *

"Glad to see you made it to practice on time, Riri." Kevin said with his signature smirk. His brown hair blowed in the wind. He had waited outside for her.

"Did you wait outside for me, Kev? That's dangerous, we may be in a slightly better part, but this is still Gotham." Mary scolded. Kevin laughed.

"Come on, Riri. It would be rude of me not to wait on the pretty girl. You're my partner besides, if we're late together Ms. Michelle won't yell at us as much." Mary laughed as they walked into the dance studio. Even though they were late together they still got a mouth full from their ballet teacher. Learning French had been a lot easier thanks to Ms. Michelle. Mary learned a lot of colorful words thanks to the french native.

"You know what, both of you, practice your duet for next week's competition. Kevin, please help Mary with her _Fouetté en tournant(whipping turn). _Last practice she fell. It seems she never does as well without you here to guide her, my star pupil."

"Thank you, Ms. Michelle.I'll try my best." He said as he took mary by the hand and lead her into the corner to church. "What happened two days ago you had it?" he asked her when they were out of earshot from their teacher. "Can't do anything without me, huh?"

Mary shoved him as she fell elegantly into her middle split. "I was worried about you." she admitted. "It was the first time in my six months here that you missed practice. I thought you might be dead in a ditch somewhere."

"How sweet of you, Riri. Worried about my well being?" He grinned cockily at the girl.

"You know for a ten year old you are are a flirt." Mary stated dryly.

"You know for a nine year old you sure are serious." He shot back. They always bantered like this. The other girls refused to work with Kevin, though he was probably the best dancer the conservatory had, others simply didn't get along with him. Mary on the other hand was progressing so fast that Ms. Michelle simply didn't know what to do with her. After Mary's first three months with the conservatory Ms. Michelle asked Mary to join the competitive troop. She was progressing too fast to place with any of the other girls or boys, but Kevin though leagues ahead of Mary was the only one who could shift his levels fast enough to dance with her. Their first competition Mary and Kevin won third place for their ballet duet in their division, by their third Mary and Kevin were winning first place all around. With Mary's acrobatics and Kevin's dance skill, they made the perfect team.

"Come on, Riri let's start. I'm assuming we don't need to work on those turns now that I'm here." Mary snorted. "Good, now lets start at the part with the back tuck." Mary nodded and the two quickly started working. Another trophy for the Michelle Bissonnette Dance Company was almost assured.

* * *

When Mary had got back to the manor that night she noticed everyone was in the Batcave, even Alfred. When she got down there faces were pale and in deep thought.

"What's going on?" She asked. Mar'i almost regretted asking as every turned to her as if she should know already.

"It seems the Joker and a few others have commandeered Arkham." Bruce said without even looking away from the batcomputer.

"Is this like the massive breakout attempt from eight months back?" Mar'i said looking at the situation stats on the batcomputer, "Joker working with Mr. Freeze and Killer Croc. That's odd, something's not right." Mar'i said. Bruce smirked slightly at her observation.

"Very good. We were just discussing that. We believe this could be a trap." Bruce said.

"It wouldn't be the first time they've tried to trap you in Arkham." Tim said.

"Yeah, but this time you're not alone. You won't fall for the same trick twice. They seriously think they can kill you with this old trick?" Stephanie raised an eyebrow at the whole situation.

"I have a bad feeling." Dick said gaze hardening. "Anybody else got this feeling." Bruce nodded while only Jason announced aloud his agreement.

"Bruce, Dick is right. I think we should call in backup from Barbara and the Birds of Prey." Bruce nodded.

"Go ahead and call. Tell Barb I only want Huntress and Canary, anyone else could cause the Joker and the other villains to act out." Jason pulled out his phone and made the call immediately. "I want one of us to stay here and operate on the batcomputer and help Oracle." Bruce said. He turned to Mar'i. "Mar'i, you wanted to prove yourself, this is your chance. Work as a guide from here, pull up records from Arkham and try to stay two steps ahead. Do well and you might have a future working with me." Mar'i nodded fervently.

"I can do that." Bruce only nodded. While Mar'i was pleased with the development it wasn't lost to anyone the way Dick's lips pressed into a fine line, but he kept his mouth shut. He would never go against Bruce especially knowing how much his daughter wanted this.

"Everyone suit up, we're heading to Arkham." It was action time, so why did something feel so off?

* * *

"Clairvoyance, we've reached Arkham." Batman's voice rang clear through the headpiece. Clairvoyance was a codename Barbara suggested as she was probably going to be doing this more often now.

"I've hacked into Arkham security cameras, I've got a visual." Mar'i replied. "I have visual."

"I have visual as well, nothing out of the ordinary." Barbara confirmed. "Move ahead as planned."

"Noted. Huntress, Canary you're with me we'll be going through the front entrance." Batman started.

"And the rest of us will go through the back, while you talk to the guards and get a fix on the situation." Red Robin finished. Red Hood said something under his breath that sounded something similar to the words, "suck up", and was elbowed by Nightwing in response.

"Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, we've got it. Let's go Robin and former robins alike!" Red hood said feigning enthusiasm.

"UH! OH! Robins in da house!" Batgirl joked following after hood and the others.

On a separate link with only Batman, Oracle and Clairvoyance. " Why did you separate?" Oracle asked.

"We can cover much more ground that way, also it's easier to make an escape." Batman said. "Most likely, Nightwing will split them up again. I have a feeling he might need to."

"So why not leave at least two of them behind?" Clairvoyance asked this time.

"Because, I'm going to need all the help I can get, and I already have people on the outside. " Mar'i looked confused. Apparently she wasn't the only one because on a private messaging system on her personal laptop, Mar'i received a message from Oracle Only containing the words, "What?" and "Who?"

"Alright, If you say so, Bruce." Barbara said with a sigh. Mar'i looked hacked into the cameras of the south entrance showing Batgirl, Nightwing, Red Hood, Red Robin, and Robin entering the building discreetly via vent entrance on the roof.

"Team Two is clear, Batman. You can go ahead." Mar'i said. She watched as Batman with Canary, and Huntress at his sides entered Arkham and were greeted by the head of security at Arkham.

"Batman!" He said with a bit of relief in his voice. "Thank God you're here. Joker's loose, and I've already lost half of my men. I had to pull my forces back, and there are still guards and doctors in there. I've lost half of Arkham already."

"You've done good so far." Canary said

"Now let us finish this." And batman walked briskly past the man further into Arkham.

"Clairvoyance, I want a visual on the half of Arkham that has been taken over by Joker and Company." He said into the comm link.

"Consider it done." With fast typing skills Mar'i had access to other half of Arkham in a matter of minutes.

* * *

"Alright, I say in the closest room to you, about fifteen thugs guarding what look to be hostages. " Clairvoyance voice rang through the ears of the heroes. " A total of six hostages."

"How many armed?' Canary asked.

"About five." answered Oracle at the same time as Clairvoyance.

"I'm liking those odds." Huntress said with a crack of her knuckles.

"Clairvoyance, Can you get a visual on Joker, or any of the other top priority threats?" He received no answer. "Clairvoyance, do you read me?" Still no answer, only static. "Oracle?" he as expected he received no answer as well. "Shit!"

* * *

"Barbara, What the heck is going on! I lost contact with every single one of them!" Mar'i was currently at the Batcave frantically searching for a way to gain back contact.

"Same thing on my end. A frequency jammer. We can find a way to bypass, but by that time..."

"Whatever it is Batman needs to know won't help him." Mar'i finished for her.

"You're catching on fast. We need to find a way to get contact back pronto."

"Already working on it." Mar'i began smashing the buttons need to get around the frequency jam when Alfred came running down the Batcave stares,

"Miss Mary, Quickly turn on the news we have an issue. " Mar'i did as she was told and didn't like what she found.

"Riddler, here." The news cast said. "Tonight, we villains are treating the citizens of gotham to a rare sight. It's most dangerous villains working together in order to create total anarky here in Gotham." Riddler was in what looked to be a fancy ballroom surrounded by what looked o be Gotham's most elite people on the floor heads covering their heads in fear.

"If you would all please turn your attention to the bridges that lead out of Gotham." On cue the footage switched from the riddler to the bridge. "Currently our precious Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn are holding captive all two hundred people with the bomb we have strapped to the bridge. Anyone who tries to escape will be immediately killed by Poison Ivy and the bridge will explode killing everyone on it." On the bridge you could see it covered in vines and at the top of the vines were the two women smiling down at the chaos they help create. The camera went back to the Riddler. "And here with me is Two Face at the Mayor's Gala for Charity. We are holding all of Gotham's officials hostage from Mayor Hull to Commissioner Gordon. So we see we easily have the upper hand. And honestly Gotham none of this was for you. Now I have one final Riddle for you folk, How do you kill a bat? Answer, You destroy it's habitat." And with a loud cackle the camera cut off.

"Oracle you got all of that." Mar'i asked.

"Every word. Then that means-"

"All of this is a trap! We need to get word to the others! NOW!"

* * *

"Alright." Nightwing announced. "We need to split up. Robin, Red Robin with me. Hood you're with Batgirl."

"Why am I always with him!" Batgirl cried. Everyone was moving forward except Robin who stayed rooted in place only looking at the security camera.

"Robin?" Nightwing asked carefully.

"Something's wrong." He said, and the words were all that was needed to get everyone on high alert.

"I'm going to try and contact batman." Red Robin said. he was silent for a minute "Communications are blocked. Something is definitely wrong. Nightwing I think we should Re-"

BEEP BEEP BEEP

Red Robin reached into his utility belt and pulled out a mini computer.

"What was that?" Robin asked.

"I have a small two way messaging system with Oracle's computer just in case something goes wrong and we need to communicate." Red Robin answered.

"Well, what does it say?" Batgirl asked, and as she did Tim's face paled.

"WE NEED TO GO! NOW!" Without another word they all sprinted towards the exit.

**"ACCESSING LOCKDOWN PROCEDURE. LOCKDOWN PROCEDURE COMMENCING." **An automated voice said.

"OH Shit!" Red hood screamed as he rolled under some closing steel doors.

"This isn't good, we've fallen into a trap!" Red Robin shouted over the sirens wailing around him.

"Yeah thanks for the info, Red Robin. I hadn't noticed!" Batgirl shouted at him as she jumped over upcoming bars.

"Now is not the time to be throwing shade, Batgirl!" Nightwing stressed as he continued to run. He could see the vent they entered through. It wouldn't take a genius to figure out that they aren't all going to make it. Hood must have figured it out too.

"HOOD!" Nightwing called

"Already on it!" Red Hood grabbed Robin by the hood of his cape and flung the eleven year old into the vent. He made it just barely and climbed in with little effort.

"You're turn, Red Robin!" Nightwing fired his grapling hook into the vent with perfect aim and shoved it into Red Robin's arms flinging him into the vent.

"You now, BG." Right before the vent Red Hood stopped readying himself as batgirl jumped onto him and used him to get into the vent. A second later the bars came down trapping Red Hood and Nightwing on the other side.

* * *

**"ACCESSING LOCKDOWN PROCEDURE. LOCKDOWN PROCEDURE COMMENCING." **An automated voice said.

"That can't be good." Canary said.

"MOVE!" Batman shouted as all three heroes jumped out of the way of a fast falling steel door, luckily they all ended up on the same side.

"Please don't tell me that means what I think it means." Huntress said.

"We're locked in Arkham Asylum." Batman said in a grave voice.

"Okay easy fix, I'll just use my canary cry, and-"

"Set a bunch of the criminally insane into Gotham. Be smart Canary, we can't risk that." Batman said

"Okay, Good point. So what do we do?" Black Canary asked.

"We put them back in their cells, and give control of Arkham back to the police." He answered.

"Umm, this may be a bad time to point this out, but if they wanted to keep us in here, What's happening in Gotham that they had to lock us in Arkham Asylum." Huntress asked. Canary visibly paled.

"This can't be good." She repeated.

* * *

"Oracle, do you have contact with Batman yet?" Mar'i asked.

"No, it's going to take time." Barbara answered.

"What about the city? Gotham's best are currently stuck in Arkham, while the criminals are going nuts."

"I've already got Lady Blackhawk, The Question, and Batwoman taking care of that, but they'll need help." Barbara sighed. "I think I should call in the league."

"NO!" Mar'i shouted. "This is a Gotham issue and should stay in Gotham. Besides, Bruce would kill us if we did."

"We may not have a choice." Barbara said sadly, "As much as I want to keep this in Gotham, we only have three people working on a case that the whole Batfamily and plus would be working on."

"As a last result, then." Mar'i said.

"Agreed."

* * *

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING, NIGHTWING!" Robin shouted as he gripped the bars from inside the vent.

"I did the math, not all of us were going to make it. Red Hood and I are the fastest, so we used that speed to get the three of you out. " Nightwing said calmly.

"You three need to get out of here, and help everyone outside because whatever shit is going on in here is going to be ten times worse out there." Jason said as he pulled a cigarette from his pocket and lit it.

"We'll take care of all the bad guys in here. Now go, you've got a job to save the rest of gotham."

"What about Batman?" Batgirl asked worriment in her voice.

"I would like to say he, Canary, and Huntress got out, but I know they didn't. Maybe we'll be able to meet up with them while we're in here, but for now you three need to go." Nightwing ordered, and with a heavy heart they did as they were told. Robin cursing the whole way through.

* * *

"We need all the people we can get." Alfred said pouring a cup of tea for the young girl working at the computer.

"I know, Alfred. Everyone we have is either in Arkham or already out there." Mar'i said she was closing to breaking through communication jammer.

"Not everyone." Alfred said. Mar'i sighed.

"Cassandra is still in Hong Kong, and last I checked Selina took a one way flight to Paris. We'll be lucky if she comes back by Christmas." Mar'i said completely missing his point.

"That's not what I was referring to, Miss Mary." Mar'i froze.

"I don't know what you're talking about." She said going back to working on the computer.

Alfred stared down at the young girl, "I think you do. Though you've hidden it well, I am well aware of Master Jason training you. I have watched you, and I have seen that much talent when it comes to fighting."

"My father." Mar'i finished. "He doesn't want me in this so it doesn't matter you can go out there."

"Did your father tell you about all of his nights out before he became Robin." Mar'i stopped and turned to alfred in surprise.

"What do you mean "before he became Robin"? I thought Bruce trained him for a while then let him go out as Robin." Mar'i said.

"Right after his parents died Bruce took Master Dick in. A little dangerous as Master Dick was unaware at the time of Master Bruce being Batman. Well, every night Master Dick would go to bed, and Batman would go out hunting for the Grayson's murder, but Master Dick was not actually asleep like Bruce originally thought. Every night Master Dick would go out and and hunt for his parents killer, as well. Batman caught him one night, and Master Dick easily put two and two together. "

"And that's how he became Robin." Mar'i finished. "So he was out running the streets long before Bruce trained him, and Bruce only trained him because he was going to go out anyway? Bruce might as well control what he did and who he fought if he was going to go out there."

"Exactly." The butler said with a nod. "One thing the Robins all have in common is the way they enter our world, Miss Mary. From Master Richard to Master Damian a Robin's first night in the field was completely against Master Bruce's orders. Master Bruce didn't want any of them to follow in his footsteps, but they did anyway and through it he has supported them all. Tonight, the world is going to need another child to step up and fight for justice, and that child is you."

"My dad will never forgive me." Mar'i said in a whisper.

"He will."

"My dad will kill Jason though." The butler cracked a smile at that.

"Now that your father will do."

"Okay Alfred, we need a mask and something I can wear. I'm too small to fit into Jason's old costume in the case, and I can't go out without some form of protection." Mar'i said getting up from the computer.

"I believe the answer lies in something your teacher might have told you." Alfred said cryptically.

Something Jason must have told her? Jason told her a lot of things what did that have to do with getting her a costume, unless Jason was Robin when he was about eight, or he was a girl in the past he wouldn't have...A girl.

Scarlet. Scarlet was her answer.

**_"You're a really good teacher." Mar'i commented one day during practice._**

**_"Thanks, but I did learn from the best." Jason said. _**

**_"Not all people who learn can teach." Mar'i said wisely. "You teach like you've taught someone before." Jason didn't say anything. "Have you taught someone before?" _**

**_"Only once." Jason answer came out guarded, and fast as if he wished the topic would be left at that. _**

**_"Who was she?" Jason was not going to get out of this easily. _**

**_"Scarlet, she was my partner." Jason said after a slight pause. His voice peaked slightly indicating this Scarlet was important to him._**

**_"What happened to her?" Mar'i asked softly as if scared of the answer. _**

**_"She left me."_**

"Alfred, you wouldn't know where Jason might keep some of his mementos from his early Red Hood day?" Mar'i asked.

"Upstairs in his room. I believe he keeps them in the chest by the foot of his bed." Alfred said with a raised eyebrow.

"Thank you!" she shouted as she ran out of the Batcave and up the stairs. Tonight Scarlet was going to make another apearrance.

* * *

"Hello?" A voice called through Batman's comm link. "I've done it. It took a while but Clairvoyance and I have broken through."

"Oracle?" Another voice in the comm link said. It was Nightwing.

"Comms back online?" This time it was Red Robin.

"Oh, thank God." Said Batgirl.

"Oka,y now that we've established that the communication is back up, can someone please explain why the fuck a majority of us are locked in Arkham Asylum!" Jason growled.

"That would be nice." Helena said in agreement. "I want to know why exactly I'm stuck in the looney bin."

"Oracle, can you tell was what exactly this trap was?" Black Canary asked.

"Well, it's really simple when you think about it. All of our major A and B list criminals are working together in order to kill us and take control of Gotham. It seems they left the more dangerous ones in Arkham to kill you all."

"So they trapped us here while they are in the process of taking Gotham over?" Red Robin asked.

"Exactly, but with you all stuck in Arkham there's barely anyone out here to take them on." Barbara said she heaved a big sighed. "We're in a lot of trouble this time, Batman. They've taken the bridge and the Mayor's Gala. I think we should call back up like League back up."

"No!" Batman growled. "Unless the situation is completely out of our control, you do not call the league."

"Bruce, the situation is out of our control! With the eight of you trapped in Arkham who's going to save the Mayor's gala or the people on the bridge! Lady Blackhawk, Question, and Batwoman won't be able to save both of them and take care of the goons terrorizing the streets! We need help!" Oracle yelled.

"Actually..." Dick started

"Not now." both Oracle and Batman said at the same time

"but-" Nightwing said.

"Later," Barbara ordered harshly as she continued to chew out the dark knight.

"Father!" This time it was Robin who interrupted the argument. "I think I should report that Brown, Drake, and I have successfully escaped Arkham Asylum."

...

"What?" growled Batman.

"The three of us managed to escape before lockdown." Damian repeated

"Nightwing and Red Hood what's your status, then?" the dark knight asked. "I thought you were all together."

"We're locked in." Nightwing confirmed. "It was either the three of them or just Jason and I, we made the call to get them out before us."

"Good call." Batman said gruffly. "Red Robin where are you currently?"

"We're climbing back up the vent back to the roof, Batman. From there we'll go back to the city and stop this." Red Robin answered.

"Good. I want those of us stuck in Arkham to get these criminals back into their cells. After we take care of that we'll figure a way out of here. Red Robin, Batgirl, Robin, I need you three to formulate a plan to save the Mayor's Gala then the bridge."

"On it." The three youngest voices rang out.

"This is going to be a long night." Nightwing sighed.

"Umm, I hate to point this out, but where has Clairvoyance been this entire conversation?" Batgirl pointed out.

Silence followed batgirl's question

"What?" Nightwing growled eerily similar to they way Batman had earlier.

* * *

"Clairvoyance, Answer me damn it!" Her father yelled in the her ear piece.

"Chill I'm here." Scarlet said calmly.

"Mary, where are you going? You're location is not at the batcave, and you're blocking my signal to your ear piece!" Oracle said

"That would be correct, Oracle." Currently she was on Jason's motorcycle and on her way to Arkham Asylum, but she wasn't going to tell them that. "I have a plan. Don't worry I won't do anything too dangerous. We'll talk later." Scarlet didn't bother waiting for a response before shutting off her comm link for the moment. If what she saw on those security cameras was correct then Robin, Batgirl, and Red Robin were going to be in some major trouble.

* * *

"What the heck do you think Mary's up to?" batgirl asked.

"Don't know. We need to focus on what's in front of us, Steph." Red Robin reminded.

"We're at the end of the vent." Robin looked back and announced. "We should be on the roof after this."

"Great because while I love our job, the squeezing three people into a vent thing isn't my favorite part." Batgirl said as the vent opened up and with it came the soft breeze of a cool summer night.

Robin went out first scoped the area to make sure none of the escaped patients were around before giving the okay for Red Robin and Batgirl to climb out.

"You see anything?" Red Robin questioned.

"No, but when has that meant anything." Robin said back. They were in enemy territory, therefore they did not have home field advantage.

Batgirl pulled out her night vision binoculars and looked around for their rides. "Shit. Not good not good at all."

"What is it?" Red Robin grabbed the Binoculars from her hands and looked where she was looking. Standing at Red Robin's car and Robin's motorcycle was the Penguin and a lot of his goons.

"How the hell are we going to get out of here?" Batgirl asked worried. The longer they took the more likely people were going to die.

"Like we always do," Damian said with a crack of his knuckles, "Fighting. Each of us will take about 25 each."

"That sounds like a losing battle, Robin. "Red Robin said formulating a plan to get them out of Arkham without the big horde of criminals spotting them..

"We're fighters, Red Robin. There's only one way out of here, and it's kicking and screaming."

"Good." I deep voice said softly. "I LIKE MY MEALS BETTER WHEN THEY FIGHT BACK!" Just in time to dodge the large fist coming down at them did The trio notice who exactly they were up against. Killer Croc.

"Oh shit!" Batgirl said as Croc swung at her.

"There's not enough space to fight him up here!" Red Robin cried. "We need to get to the ground!"

"Oh yeah, and then after we kick his ass then we go and take down Penguin and his men! Get real, Red Robin!" Robin shouted at his older brother.

"Doesn't look like we have much of a choice!" Stephanie said. "JUMP!" and off the roof they did. Using their different acrobatics they all got down from the roof safely, but landed right in front of Penguins men.

"Oops." Batgirl said.

"Big Oops" Red Robin added.

"Good Job, Croc. Just as planned. Today is the day we rid Gotham of it's bat problem. Kill 'em, boys." Penguin ordered. And the men attacked.

They were outnumbered by a lot, honestly this fight could have been easier if they didn't have to dodge Killer Croc as well as the thugs advances.

"Batgirl, duck!" Red Robin called out. She did just that as batarangs flew over her head and hit the goons behind her.

"I had it! I don't need help, Red Robin." Batgirl said she flipped a thug over with her bo staff.

"Well, if you get your head in the game maybe he wouldn't need to help you." Robin scoffed at the girl.

"Shut up, My head is in the ga- ROBIN WATCH OUT!" Batgirl screamed. Robin turned around to see Killer Croc behind him ready to crush him with his fist when a very familiar motorcycle came out of no where, and crashed into Killer Croc and sent him flying into the side of the asylum. Flipping off of the motorcycle was a girl no older than Robin, and she flipped off the cycle with as much ease as any of them would.

"Who in the hell?" Robin started.

"Shut up and fight!" She cut him off. No need to be told twice Robin quickly threw himself back into the fray all the while watching the new comer intently.

The way she fought was familiar. She fought like them, but it was slightly more brawling then actual martial arts. From her form he could tell she knew the martial arts but preferred a more MMA style of brawling then say Nightwing's perfect martial arts form. Actually now that he thought about it the girl fought a lot like Red Hood. While fighting he tried to get a closer look at the girl but found her identity hidden by a pair of round, red tinted goggles. Who the hell was she?

Outside of the fight Penguin noticed his numbers start to diminish with the fall of Killer Croc. Penguin knew he had maybe 3 minutes, Five if he was lucky to get away before the younger vigilantes got to him. Yes, right now was the perfect time to get away. Penguin started to move closer and closer to the tree line, he was almost home free when a silver and black butterfly thrower nearly took his nose off, and embedded itself into the tree behind him.

"Wait a minute, Cobblepot. I'm not done with you yet." The girl left the rest of her thugs to Red Robin who was just finishing up to attack the host of this little party. Penguin quickly pulled out his umbrella girl and wasted no time firing at the girl. With another throw of one of her butterfly blades she easily knocked the umbrella from his hand. She quickly approached him dealing punch after punch. With a final spin making her long black ponytail flare out did the girl elbow the man straight in the nose knocking him out. "Well, that takes care of that." She said dusting off her hands.

Tim stood there shocked, "Thanks for the help but-"

"Who are you?" Stephanie finished. Robin walked over to the tree where where one of her throwers was stuck in the tree.

"Really, Batgirl?" He said "I could have sworn you were smarter than that." He plucked the thrower from the three and threw it at her feet. Comprehension lit up on her face,

"But this is one of…. Mar'i?" The goggled girl smiled and nodded

Angry yelling started to come from Batgirl's comm. "What do you mean Mary?! Is she there? She's there, isn't she? Tell her to turn on her comm, now."

Mary sighed, "You left your comm link on again, didn't you?" Batgirl only shrugged and mouthed an apology as Mar'i turned her comm link back on.

"Yes," She said reluctantly

"What the hell do you think you're doing!" Her father's voice.

"I believe that I'm helping." Mar'i said.

"This was stupid and dangerous and if I wasn't locked inside of Arkham I would-"

"Dick," Red Robin called out cutting off his rant, "She kinda saved our asses. Cut her some slack."

"Yeah, Damian would be croc food if it wasn't for her." Batgirl defended as well.

Nightwing was silently for a moment, "Alright." He said a little more calmly, "but still she has no where near enough training to out there, especially not on a night like tonight."

"Grayson, she seems decently trained to me." Robin cut in. Dick paused.

"How? I haven't-"

"Hood has." Batman said quickly. "We need all the people we can get. You're going to have to drop this one till later." Mar'i rolled her eyes if Alfred knew of course Bruce would.

You could almost hear the way Nightwing glared at the younger man.

"If I die please note that it probably wasn't the inmates who killed me." Red Hood said feigning a solemn tone.

"I'll won't kill you now," Nightwing said a little too sweetly, "I'd do it in your sleep, so sleep with one eye open tonight, Hood."

"Too late for that." Hood said under his breath, "Anyway what are we going to call you?"

"Probably the same thing you called the first girl who wore this outfit, Scarlet."

"Woah, woah ,woah, you have on Sasha's outfit? Dang she was tiny." Red Hood said.

"Made some changes, Kept the purple Kevlar main body part, but tossed the red cape and hood. Also added that black leather jacket you gave me for Christmas."

Red Hood laughed, "You are good. I must have done something right. OW!" It didn't take much to guess that Nightwing had hit him.

"Topic at hand." Batman reminded. "Scarlet, can you give us an update on our situation."

"Well other than Riddler and Two-Face taking over the Mayor's Gala, and Harley and Ivy taking everyone on the bridge hostage. We also have Bane and his men running the streets terrorizing the people. Last I checked Batwoman, The Question, and Lady Blackhawk were trying to take down his forces a little at a time."

"and the police force?"

"Commissioner Gordon and a lot of the higher ups are stuck in the gala." This time it was Barbara who answered.

"Why didn't you say that earlier?" Nightwing asked.

"Because I thought you had figured it out. He's fine, it's not him I'm worried about. Riddler just made another announcement, at midnight they plan to kill the mayor and Ivy's going to destroy the bridge with everyone on it. Things are looking really bad, Batman."

"Then It's a good thing we're here." A sultry voice cut into the conversation.

"…..I thought you were still in Paris." The dark knight asked.

"I thought you kept better tabs on me." Catwoman answered back coyly.

"How did you even get on this frequency?" Barbara asked. She prided herself that it was almost unhackable.

"Didn't she say 'we'?" Another familiar voice said.

"Guess who I found in the airport?" Catwoman teased. "I caught her trying to sneak out the women's restroom window.

"Cassandra!? Holy Crap! You're Back!" said Batgirl relieved

"We saw what was happening on the news at the airport." Cassandra explained. "They locked the whole thing down for people's protection. I found Selina while she was trying to sneak out as well."

"Now that you have the manpower to do what you have to you can relax." Selina said. "Black Bat and I've got Harley and Ivy. You kids take Riddler and Two-Face."

"You heard her!" Oracle yelled. "Get moving. I want all this done by midnight!"

"Jesus, don't get your panties in a twist." Batgirl said. "Let's go." Batgirl hopped on the back of Red Robin's bike(Which he had gotten on sometime during the conversation).

"Small issue, " Scarlet winced. "I kinda crashed Jason's bike into Killer Croc so I need a ride."

"YOU DID WHAT!" Jason screamed. Scarlet turned off her comm.

"Ride with me then, Gray- Scarlet." Robin said with a slight slip of the tongue.

Scarlet smirked, "No real names in the field, Robin." She teased. He frowned and shoved his helmet into her hands

"Just get on the bike." He growled. Scarlet laughed.

* * *

"Someone please tell me that they have a plan." Batgirl groaned. They were currently on the roof of the building holding the Mayor's gala. They were outnumbered more than they were earlier, and they had civilians to save. Oh the joy.

"Actually, I think I do." Tim stated as he pulled out his mini computer. "This building is actually connected to some underground tunnels."

"You mean the ones used to set slaves free?" Batgirl asked.

"Yup, those exactly. We can use those to get the civilians out then take care of Riddler, Two-Face, and their goons." Red Robin said "And the door to those tunnels should be right in that corner. " Red Robin pointed to the corner farthest away from Two-face and the Riddler, and sitting in that corner just happened to be a familiar face.

"Talk about luck. Gordon's sitting right there." Batgirl said happily. "With him it will be so much easier getting all those Civilians out."

"Yeah, but we'll need a distraction." Robin pointed out.

"Distraction is my middle name." Scarlet said.

Red Robin looked at her seriously, "I don't think so. Your dad will bury me alive in the same grave he's going to put Jason in."

Scarlet pouted, "I'll be fine. I'll do the safest distraction ever, I swear. Besides, Commissioner Gordon should speak to faces he knows." Red Robin frowned realizing she was right.

"Fine, you can go, but Robin has to go with you." Red Robin said. "Robin, make sure she doesn't make any rookie mistakes."

Scarlet glared at the boy two years her senior, "Oh come on!" Scarlet said offended.

"Hey! until you have more than a year's experience you're a rookie, and can not go anywhere in the field by yourself without permission." Red Robin ordered.

"That's dumb, I bet you didn't even follow that rule." Scarlet said defiantly.

"I don't remember that rule." Batgirl said underneath her breathe. Red Robin elbowed her in the side to cover up her whispering.

"Fine, whatever, but you have to give me your mini computer." scarlet said.

Red Robin gave her a confused look, "Why?"

"Don't worry about it." Sacrlet snached the Computer from his hands. "You'll get it back." She promised.

"Okay, fine just go you two." Red robin said with a groan. The night had only begun but it felt like it had been forever. This was going to be a long night.

"Alright, now wait till we've gotten to Commissioner Gordon before you start taking out thugs all around, you too Robin. We don't need any premature shooting." Red Robin said. "Also don't forget to get the mayor to safety first. We don't need Two-FAce shooting him in retaliation."

"I got it, Tim. " Scarlet said into the earpiece. "Just tell me when you're in position." The only sound of confirmation was the sound of the comm link temporarily shutting off. "Alright, Robin. Megaphone please." and Robin handed her the item she requested. Oh, this was going to be fun.

* * *

"It's getting closer to midnight, and they haven't pulled anything yet." Two-Face said to Riddler.

"They will." Riddler assured. "One thing Bats are is resilient. They won't let a little thing like being trapped in Arkham keep them from saving lives. So keep an eye out, they could be here already." As the Riddler said the words Music started to play, actual classical music from an opera.

"What the hell is that?" Two-Face asked pushing the gun closer to the mayor's head.

"The habanera from Carmen." The Riddler answered quickly "But the real question is why is it playing, and who is playing it?"

"BOSS, there's someone up there!" A Thug shouted, all eyes looked up to see a young girl, up in the building's rafters.

"LADIES, GENTLEMEN...CRIMINALS." The young girl yelled into the megaphone as the music stopped. "I am Scarlet. Two-Face, Riddler, I'm giving you one chance to release these hostages or you're about to be really embarrassed."

"Who do you think you are, little girl?" Two-Face growled, pointing his gun at the girl in the rafters. "You mouthy like the first Robin, how about I beat that out of ya like I did him."

"So is that a no?" The girl asked. "Okay, then. Sorry to say this but you're about to have your ass beat by a little girl."

"Take care of her." Riddler ordered the goons.

* * *

"What in the world?" Jim Gordon asked to himself at the sight of the girl in the rafter and her demands.

PSST

Jim turned his head. He swore he heard-

PSST.

This time he was sure he heard a noise, he turned to his left and next to him he could see the bright blue eyes and a tuft of blonde hair he knew belonged to Batgirl, and the familiar form of Red Robin behind her.

"Hiya, Commish!" She whispered.

"Where have you all been?" He asked, in a hush tone.

"Long story, but we need your help." She said hurriedly. "We don't have a lot of time. Scarlet and Robin are working as a distraction while we get the hostages out. you think you can help us sneak them out."

"It'll have to be done fast and quietly. Once we get the first person down here, Robin will be shutting off the lights to make it easier for you to sneak them out." Added Red Robin.

"What about the mayor, Two-Face's got him?" Gordon asked.

"Scarlet's taking care of it."

* * *

"Hey hey wait. I'm giving you guys a chance of a life time. You should really take it." Scarlet said earnestly.

"Lite her up boys!" Two-Face yelled.

"First person is out! Shut down the light!" Went Red Robin in Scarlet's comm. As soon as the sentence was over, the lights went out and the gala was flooded with darkness. The shocked screams of criminals and civilians rang out in a short startled breath.

"I warned you." Said Scarlet gravely. She then swung down from the rafters and kicked Two-Face straight in the head knocking him from the Mayor. She flipped down from her line effortlessly to address the mayor.

"Good evening, Mr. Mayor. I'm going to need you to put on this harness." She put harness into the man's arms and waited till he tried putting it on, "Once you've got it on. I'm going to push this button and it's going to send you up into the rafters where Robin is waiting for you. He's going to be giving you some instruction that you must follow then he is going to join me down here. Do you understand, Mr. Mayor?" She asked the man nodded. "Good, then off you go." She pushed the button on his chest sending him flying towards the rafters and to safety.

Behind her Scarlet heard a low growl and quickly ducked before the Riddler could strike her with his cane.

"Have several seats." She ordered before throwing her butterfly throwers at the riddler nailing his suit and himself to the wall in front of him.

With a groan Two-face got up, "What are you morons doing!" He yelled, "Get her!" all at once the goons came after her. Scarlet prepared herself to take them on when a smoke pellet dropped from above creating a cloud of smoke blocking Scarlet from the goon's view. When the smoke cloud was gone Scarlet was gone as well.

"What are you doing?!" Scarlet hissed quietly at Robin from a top the rafters.

"Keeping you from making a rookie mistake." He said calmly. "You can't take them all on like that, you'll get yourself killed wait till Red Robin and Batgirl get back, then you can go nuts. Until then you pick them off one by one and silently." Scarlet nodded taking the piece of advice and swung to the next rafter where a poor criminal stood below watching a group of hostages. Poor thing probably wouldn't be waking up for another three days.

Robin and Scarlet took down maybe half of the numbers by the time the got the call.

"All civilians have been cleared, We're heading back up there. Make sure you guys leave some bad guys for us."

With a green light, Scarlet and Robin began openly attacking their criminals. Two minutes later Batgirl and Red Robin joined them, they were completely done 45 minutes later.

Red Robin looked at the time, "12:06. Dang I wanted to be done by midnight."

"You guys did a good job." Barbara said over the comm. "I'm proud. Black Bat just called she said she's cleared the bridge, and Nightwing said they should be in about 10 minutes. Bruce wants everyone at the clocktower when they're done."

"We'll be there." Red Robin confirmed. "Do you need anything else, Commissioner Gordon?" he asked the officer.

"We're good now kids, thanks for the help." He answered.

"No problem." Batgirl answered as all four of them launched their grapples at the building ahead. "It's what we do." Yes, saving people was what they did, and Mar'i was sure this is what she was supposed to do. Now all she had to do was tell her father that.

* * *

"According to Helena your dad's in there. Ready to do this?" Stephanie asked.

Mar'i took a deep breath. "Yeah, as much as I can be." she admitted.

"You did good work today." Tim said "Normally I'd be against it, but you were a natural out there, more so than any of us were our first night out."

"I agree. We are with you every step of the way." Stephanie said. "Right Damian?" She patted the boy on the back for emphasis.

Damian turned his head away, and stuck his nose in the air, "Your performance today was passable, but I helped train so of course it was slightly above par."

"What!? No you didn't. You didn't help train me at all." Mar'i disagreed.

"I taught you how to throw your butterflies and everything else." He countered. "Therefore, I helped train you." He asserted.

"Whatever, Jason was working that with me too anyway. Get over yourself." Mar'i proclaimed.

"You first."

"Why I oughta-"

"Enough!" Tim barked both of you inside. "Mar'i don't forget you still have to face your father." Mar'i frowned.

"Thanks for reminding me." She sighed. "Let's get this over with." Mar'i pushed the doors open to the clock tower and walked up the stairs. Unsurprisingly she found Selina and Bruce in their normal flirty state, but watching the security footage of the Mayor's gala with Barbara. Jason was in the corner nursing what looked like a soon-to-be black eye with Cassandra telling him something with a slight smirk. Canary and Huntress were laughing at Jason's injury which looked to be the only one he sustained save for his bleeding shoulder, which nobody looked alarmed at so it must not have been serious.

"You guys sure are late." Barbara said turning from the computer., breaking the ice.

"We took the scenic route for giggles." Tim answered.

"Mary, Mary, Mary." Helena started "I have to say I'm impressed."

"Same sentiment here." Dinah agreed.

Bruce turned from Selina and looked fully at the video, "You're a little erratic, and like to jump the gun a little." He commented. Mar'i looked a little crestfallen at the words of the dark knight. "But it was good work." Mar'i perked up.

"Take that to heart." Stephanie whispered in her ear. "He doesn't dish out complements that often."

Selina spoke up with the same praise everyone was giving her the only one who stayed silent was her father who had not said a word since she had walked into the room.

"You don't have anything to say?" She asked walking up to him.

He raised an eyebrow at her, "You want me to praise you on something you shouldn't have done? You want me to congratulate you on lying to me for months?" Dick snorted "I don't think so."

"But- but"

"But what? At the end of the day you disobeyed me, Mar'i, and that's not acceptable." Mar'i looked up at her father with sad eyes. She knew this was coming, but somewhere she had hoped that maybe he would be a little proud of her. "I'm upset Mar'i. I don't expect to get over this for a long time, but you were good out there, Mar'i." Mar'i looked up, shocked that her father has praised. "A little rough around the edges, but that's because Jason trained you. You are talented Mar'i, and it was almost surreal seeing you fight like that. I am, in a way, proud of you." Mar'i smiled. She had gotten what she wanted most. "But," Mar'i frowned. Buts were never good. "You are still in trouble. I am still mad at you, and nothing is going to change the fact that you went behind my back for months doing something that I explicitly told you not to do. Do you understand?"

"I understand you, I really do, but you can't keep me from this." Mar'i said. "I want to do this. I want to help, and I will do it with or without your permission. In other words, get on board or get out of the way." Nostalgia rang through Dick's head. He believed he had said something similar to Bruce and the other Justice League members when they started the Teen Titans. He smiled at her. She really was his daughter. She had his sense of justice, his smile, and his chatty nature, but she was headstrong, and knew exactly what she wanted just like her mother. A deadly combination to anyone who stood in the way of this girl's way, and that person surely wasn't going to be him.

"I was wrong to stop you from doing something you truly wanted to do, so I'll let you do this." He said finally. Mar'i was practically jumping with joy. "On one condition, you have to be my partner." Mar'i hugged her father.

"You're the only one I want to be partners with."

"You're grounded by the way." He said still hugging her. She pulled away with a shocked look. "I told you nothing will change the fact that you lied to me for a full six months. So do you have anything you want to call yourself when you're my partner?" He asked. Mar'i blinked.

"I never thought about it." She answered honestly.

"What about Starling? It's a type of bird, I thought it would be fitting." Tim called out. Everyone turned to him not expect him to answer. He's face turned beet red and turned away. "I may have been thinking about it for a while, okay."

Everyone laughed.

"Wait, how did Jason get a black eye? His Red Hood mask would protect his face form something like that." As Mar'i had said it, Helena snorted and stifled a giggle along with Cassandra.

"Why don't you ask my ever loving older brother?" Jason spat angrily.

Mar'i turned to her father, "You didn't."

"Oh, I did. He needed some kind of punishment for aiding my daughter in lying to me. So the moment he took off the Mask, I socked him straight in the eye."

"And you didn't hold back." Jason glared at the older man who only shrugged in response.

"What did you expect? I was really angry."

"I'll make sure not to piss you off again then. Damn it still stings." Jason said touching his eye tenderly.

"Wimp." Cassandra called out

* * *

"So tell me, Riri where did you happen to get that nasty looking cut on your arm." Kevin asked the next day at dance practice.

"Fell down in the yard." She answered quickly. "Not that big of a deal. I'm fine." Mar'i lied easily. She had a feeling she'd be doing more and more of that to Kevin.

"You're a lot of things, Mary, clumsy is not one of them. What really happened, and does it have anything to do with you being grounded?" Mary frowned when her dad said grounded he meant it, she didn't go anywhere but to dance practice and home since it was the summer and school was out. She couldn't even go to the Manor! Complete and other lockdown, the man had put a tracer on her for god's sake, and said if she took it off he would be adding another week to her already overly long punishment. Grounded, indeed.

"Just trust that if it were something important that I would have told you okay, Kevin." She said. He stared at her intently for a moment before determining that was enough for now.

"Come on let's work on the routine." He said. She nodded and went to start the music when a familiar buzzing got Mary's attention. She walked over to her dance bag and pulled out her phone.

"I'm sorry, Kev. I've got to go, family emergency." Mar'i said in a rushed tone as she packed her dance bag.

"What! Mary, you can't miss practice!"

"Sorry, but my aunt fell down the stairs, we think she's got a concussion. I'll make it up to you with a first place trophy at our next competition! Don't snitch on me, bye!" and she promptly closed the door leaving what ever Kevin was going to say now useless.

He sighed, "What am I going to do with her?"

* * *

"Alright, I'm good. What's up?" She said into her phone.

"Looks like some robbery close to you." Oracle said. "Your dad's on the way."

"Good, I'll be there in two minutes" Mar'i pulled out a black and purple uniform from her back, and smiled.

Starling was born.

* * *

_Final notes: _

_Word Final word count: 10,051(WTF) _

_This is honestly the longest chapter I have ever written in my life, but I needed the first arc to be 6 chapters. Mary's not Nightstar yet, if she were this origin story would be over! and I have so much more left of Mary's story! I played with a lot of names for Mary's vigilante persona, one of them was yes, Nightingale, but I decided against it last minute. Origins: Nightstar has about 3 more arcs after this not all of them being 6 chapters but some will be. Sorry this chapter took me so long. I kept having to start over because I lost internet and my computer was being stupid. I hope everything was up to par with the rest of the work. I'm running on nothing because i've been working on this story for days now._

_Special thanks to Victory Goddess, ArsenalMadness, and a guest for their reviews! Don't forget to Review/Follow/favorite!_

_Well this arc of Mary's life is now over, onto the next one. _

_Next chapter, Nightwing &amp; Starling. _

_ ~Miyu K. June 25, 2014_


	7. Nightwing and Starling 1

_**Bold Italics= Flashback **_

_Italics=author's note/final notes_

* * *

**Nightwing &amp; Starling 1**

_The Thief Odile_

School was something Mar'i had grown to tolerate. Just like any child, Mar'i did not like school, but she tolerated the horrible place because her father asked her to. It wasn't as hard as a transition as it could have been she had Kevin and the other dance studio children to help and Gotham Prep didn't seem all that bad. That didn't mean that children didn't talk. It wasn't as bad in the elementary section, but the high school and middle school seemed to be hung up on Bruce Wayne's granddaughter attending their school.

"Mini Grayson!" A voice called out to here. It was of course Damian who continued to call her that horrible nickname. "Alfred is here to get us. Let's go." He ordered. Mary sighed, it seemed that her dad had told him to watch out for her in school, not that she minded, but still she could take care of herself.

"I'm coming, Damian. Do you have to scream at me every day when it's time to go home?" Damian only gave her a look that she easily read as 'Are you stupid?' and sighed. Damian and her got along just fine, but even she sometimes needed a break from his Damianness.

"Damian, can you help me with my english homework?" Mary asked as she got into the car. She was careful not to show anything in the skirt she was wearing on Tamaran people didn't care about that, but on earth when lady's wear a skirt they have to keep their legs closed. Mar'i really didn't understand why, seemed like a foolish notion to her.

"Fine, what do you need help on?" See they got along fine, if she needed anything he would help her and vice versa, but one wouldn't say they were close...Yet.

"Diagraming sentences." Mar'i answered. "I told my teacher I've never done anything like that, but she said I was lying and she refused to help me. She doesn't believe me when I say English isn't my first language." Damian snorted.

"Well, you do speak it perfectly. Sucks for you then. English isn't my first language either, but I still do fine in the class. What do you have in the class a 'B'?" Mar'i glared at the older boy.

"Yeah, but you had tutors to teach you all the technical stuff about English. My mother only taught me to speak it properly, so of course I'm going to stink at it." Mary said pointing a finger in his face. "Plus, at least you lived on planet. Tamaranian is so much more different than english, a lot of english words, english words I need to know for class, don't exist in the tamaranian language, so excuse me for not doing as well as I could be doing in the class!"

"Geez, sorry." Damian apologized though not sincerely. "I didn't know you were that touchy about it."

Mar'i sighed. "I didn't mean to blow up at you like that. I'm just frustrated. All the other subjects come easy because they're mostly the same as on Tamaran. The math is the same, so is the science. History is different, but that's just memorization, and I've read enough books to know most of the history anyway, but english continues to serve as my weak point.

Damian clicked his tongue, "Tt, Fine. Tiny Grayson, I will help you on whatever you need to know about the subject of english. Have you told your father about you struggling in class."

"I still have a decent grade so he doesn't ask questions besides, He's busy with work as it is. Gotham is very different from Blüdhaven." Mar'i said looking out of the car window.

"Okay, so I won't tell him. You know I think you're the only one of us to ever get a 'B' in any subject." Damian said with a smirk. She turned back to him and glared again.

"Shut up. You sound so stupid. You know Cassandra didn't even go to school, she had private tutors. Stop trying to make me mad and help me with the friggin english homework." With that Mar'i threw the english book hard into the boy's lap which he of course caught. Then something happened that Alfred himself knew happened very rarely, Damian Wayne laughed. A real laugh, not one of his condescending laughs, but a laugh like he truly thought something was funny. Looking back into the mirror Alfred found out what it was. It seemed that outside of her domino mask Miss Mary wasn't all that menacing looking. In fact the look of anger she was currently giving the young master was quite cute. Yes, this warrior princess who could probably kill a person given the chance and lack of morals was cute. She still had a slight baby face that she would most likely grow out of by the time she turned 11 and dimples that her father had when he was young. All in all, she was almost too cute to believe that she swung around roof tops at night, she looked too innocent to be the type, though she tried to act scary. The moment the girl puts on a domino mask it was like a switch, she could be as intimidating as her father, and all the others. Mary definitely had the idea of secret identity mastered. To the public eye, Mary Grayson and Starling were completely different people.

* * *

"Hey, Riri," Kevin greeted happily. "You actually made it to practice on time. I'm so proud." He hugged the girl

"Oh whatever. Has Ms. Michelle finished our routine?" Mary asked not bothering to escape from the boy's embrace.

"Yeah she has, teaching us the rest of it tonight. Are you sure you want to do this, I mean this is a hip hop piece. I thought you would stick to Ballet and lyrical."

"I needed a break from the norm, besides wants us to broaden our horizon." Mary pushed the boy off her her finally, He had always been clingy like that, Mary didn't mind because honestly she was clingy like that too, but Kevin was worse. When the time came to it though, Mary could hug a person to death. Jason swears she gets it from her father.

Kevin frowned, "Ms. Michelle said I couldn't teach you! Can you believe that! She trust me to teach you ballet, but I can't teach you hip hop." Kevin complained.

"It can't be that bad." Mary said looking on the brighter outlook. "Who's teaching one of the paid teachers or a student."

Kevin sighed, "I don't know. I hope a teacher though, because all of the older girls hate me."

"That we do." Agreed the girl that walked in. She had short black hair in a bob cut, and wore a black swan necklace around her neck.

"Kitty?" Kevin asked almost outraged. "You can't be teaching us. You haven't even been dancing that long!"

"Not ballet anyway," Kitty corrected "I've been dancing hip hop for years."

Kevin glared at the girl while Mary only smiled and nodded.

"You know, Michelle was really pushing us to try hip hop, why is that what's the deal?" Kevin asked with narrowed eyes something was off he could feel it.

"You caught me." Kitty held up her hands in surrender. "Michelle wants you two to join The Revolutionaries." Kevin gapped at the girl with mouth wide open.

"Us, join The Revolutionaries?" Mary asked "I thought that only kids 14 and older can join, and I am no where near to that."

"We want to make an exception for the two of you. You two have been dominating competitions lately, and we think that we should reward you for that."

"But we're lyrical and ballet dancers, for all you know we might not even be good enough for The Revolutionaries, I mean has The Revolutionaries have never not gotten first place?" Kevin asked. Kitty paused before answering.

"We want to believe that you two deserve this, but like everyone else you have to make your way onto our team. If you place at the competition with this routine we'll let the both of you onto the revolutionaries a whole 4 years early, 5 for you Mary. Don't make us regret giving you this chance. So are you both in, or not?"

Kevin and Mary looked at each other for a moment a silent conversation passing between them, Kevin looked a little skeptical while Mary gave a look of excitement at the area they could cover. Eventually Mary smiled her way into getting Kevin to sigh and agree.

"We'll do it." He said evenly. "Riri believes that this is a good chance and even if we don't make it, we should at least try. I'm comfortable where I am, but Mary's the boss." He shrugged his shoulders. "So what's this routine that's going to get to get us into The Revolutionaries?"

Kitty smiled, "Have you ever seen the Addams Family?"

Kevin nodded an a now interested yes, while Mary gave a confused look

"What's the Addams Family?" Kitty gave Kevin a questioning look while He just returned it.

"Doesn't matter, Riri. We'll watch it later. She's not really from this country, Kitty. She won't understand any pop culture references unless they've already been shown to her."

Mary frowned, "I do know some." She claimed. "I saw those Hungry Games movies."

Kitty stifled a laugh while Kevin corrected her, "Hunger Games, Riri."

"Okay, first thing on our list is to watch the Addams Family, you should watch it in order to play the part well, for now though I'm going to teach you the routine." Kitty announced. "Okay first off this is going to be really creepy feeling so you have to-"

* * *

"Alright, great you two. If you don't get first place Then the freaking competition is rigged. You guys pick up routines faster than most people I've danced with." Kitty praised.

"Thank you." Kevin and Mary answered in unison. Mary was being held up in Kevin's arm and quickly tapped his shoulder to let her down, which he did very gently.

"You guys were made for hip hop, you sure you don't want to do it full time?" Kitty asked jokingly. Kevin made a slightly disgusted face while Mary laughed. He liked hip hop but ballet was his first love. "Joking, Kev. Anyway the next part is where your acrobatics come into play. Mary, you're-" A phone ringing cut her off.

Kevin turned and glared at his partner.

"It's not mine!" Mary shouted in her own defense.

"It's mine," Kitty said, "Give me a minute." Kitty walked over to her bag and pulled out her phone and answered in english, then quickly switched to Russian.

To bad for Kitty, both children in the room spoke Russian, Mary for obvious reasons and Kevin because his mother spoke it. Sadly, she didn't realize from the worried faces on both children that they understood her phone conversation.

"Sorry kiddies," Kitty said with a forced smile. "Duty calls. I'll teach you the rest tomorrow. For now you guys can go home, but be here on time tomorrow."

"Yeah, we'll be here." Mary and Kevin turned to each other again, and both had the same idea floating in their heads as Kitty walked out.

"So, we're following her, right?" Kevin confirmed.

Mary gave him an unsure look, "I don't know, Kevin. It sounds kind of dangerous. May be we shouldn't go at all." That was a lie Mary was going, but not with a civilian.

"It's either you come with me or I go alone, Riri, your choice." Definitely not an option. The phone call sounded serious… almost the kind of serious her family took care of during the night.

"Kevin, are you sure. I really don't think we should go."

"Like I said, I'm going with or without you, Riri. I want to see who made our Katya leave out of here like a bat out of hell. You coming?"

Mary sighed, "Fine, let's go." It was in her job description to go, but bringing a civilian? Mary was going to lose all sorts of points. Boy, he father would pitch a fit if he ever found out, twice goes for Bruce.

They followed Kitty out of the Conservatory, and all over Gotham till they got to the east end, close to crime alley.

"Kevin, maybe we should go back now. Your dad will be there to pick us up soon." Mary said trying to convince the older boy to leave.

"Already got it covered." He answered with his signature smirk, "Oh lovely, Riri, I already called him and told him we'd be out a little late. He said not to worry because he had some more work anyway."

"Kevin, I'm seriously not okay with you-"

"Look she's going into that bar!" Kevin ran after the girl but stopped round the corner so not to be spotted. Kitty talked to man at the door before he let her in.

"How are we going to get in there, Kev. It's not like they're going to let a nine and ten year old into a bar."

"We don't need to get in through the front door." Kevin answer easily. "Thank, God. This is Gotham and in the city there are bound to be fire escapes." Kevin ran round back of the bar and to no ones surprise there was a fire escape, and at the top of the building was a conveniently broken window.

"Mary, I'm going to boost you up like we did it that one jazz routine, remember?" Kevin said looking at the tall fire escape.

Mary nodded and prepared herself. In reality she didn't need Kevin's help to reach the fire escape, but she couldn't tell him that. As if she were a cheerleader Kevin boosted her up far enough to climb up onto the fire escape so she could drop the ladder down for him.

They smartly climbed to the top window in silence for fear of being caught. Mary reached into the window, unlock it and they both climbed inside.

"Alright this is the part that gets interesting-." There was a sharp pain to the back of his neck, and Kevin fell to the ground out cold.

"Sorry, Kev. It was the only way." Mary said looking down at the boy with sad eyes. She didn't want to knock him out, really, but he had forced her hand when he didn't chicken out from the adventure as she had planned.

Looking around Mary took notice of her surroundings. The room seemed to be used only as storage meaning she only needed to hide Kevin. He wouldn't be waking until long after all of this was over and she would just tell him he passed out after practice and it was all a dream. Tip toeing around the boy's fallen form Mary crept out of the room and down the stairs. Kitty was on the third floor, that's what the large Russian man at the door had told her. Kevin couldn't have heard that but Mary with her superior hearing could.

Mary only needed to get close to hear whatever specifics were going on because from the phone call she just about knew what was going on. Thank god for Tamaranian super hearing right

**_"Hello? What do you want, Dimka?" Kitty asked as soon as she answered the phone._**

**_"You know what I want, Katya." The man answered. _**

**_"Don't call me, Katya." she growled quietly before looking back at the two children behind her offering a small smile. "I am teaching a class. Make this quick, Dmitri." _**

**_"The heist needs to be done tomorrow night. I've got a buyer. You can do it, yes?" _**

**_Kitty sighed, "Dimka, I don't know..."_**

**_"Katya, Katya, poor young little Katya. As your older brother, I work hard to put you in the best schools and pay for your dreams such as that dance school you love so much. I only want this tiny favor from you, Katya. You're very talented at what you do, Katya. I'm only using this talent to get what I need done." _**

**_"You want me to commit a felony so you can get a little cash." Kitty said unsure._**

**_"No." He said a little outraged at the idea. "I want you to commit a felony for a lot of cash. Come by the bar, we'll discuss details then." _**

**_"I'm busy at the moment." Kitty mentioned again. _**

**_"I don't give a shit. Get here or your little dance school is getting treated to my favorite cocktail, Understand?" Kitty willed herself into staying neutral in her face. _**

**_"I'm coming, I'll be there in half an hour." _**

**_"Good." And Dmitri hung up. Kitty put on her best fake smile and turned back to Mary and Kevin. _**

**_"I've got to go. We'll finish this tomorrow." and like that Kitty took out of the room like a bat out off hell._**

* * *

The climb down the stairs was much easier now that she didn't have Kevin with her. Don't get her wrong because of his years of ballet he was much better at stealth than a lot of super heroes, but she needed him to at least on par with someone in her family. Mary was sure getting this information would score her some points with Jason. He had been complaining that some new Russian guys were trying to get on his turf, now Mary could get him some more info. After all, She was entitled to help the man who taught her. Not only that, but this could be the answer to the passed cat burglaries the last couple of weeks, ones that Catwoman claimed not to have a hand in. To be fair, they hadn't really had the time to deal with these simple thefts. Bigger fish to fry and all, but Mary wished they could stop all sorts of crime no matter how petty.

Mary was about to check to see a way to see into the room when she had heard voices coming from down the hall. With no place else to run Mary hid in the room closest to her, and dived behind the desk hoping that they wouldn't find. This was a lame hiding place, but until she was sure what exactly she was dealing with it would have to do. Luckily the knock on the door wasn't for the room she was in, but the room next door. She heard muffled voices speaking in Russian until she had heard a voice she knew.

Kitty!

Mary had lucked out and choose the room adjacent to the room Kitty was now meeting her Russian mob contact. How did Kitty even get in this situation, anyhow? From the sound of the earlier phone conversation it was obvious she was Russian, but that didn't mean she was apart of the mob. Mary could hear the conversation leave the pleasantries and enter serious discussion. She had to see what was going on in there. Looking around the room she spotted her savior, a vent. One of the first things Jason taught her, A vent is a bat's best friend. They are perfect for escape routes, not to mention entrance into a place where you probably won't find security. But in this case Mary couldn't use it for access into the other the room, not that she wanted to go in there. Were she caught that close Mary would be dead, but even if she wanted to use the vent it was too small for her to fit through. She could still use it to gage the situation still. Pulling out a long but thin cord with a small screen from her pocket, Mary began to fish the cord through the vent. The cord had a small camera attached to end so Mary could see who exactly was making Kitty do something illegal. Finally Mary had found the room, and with it she could see a clear shot of everyone but the head honcho sitting at his desk back turned to the vent.

"So this information from Ferris is perfect. We'd have Langley eating out of the palm of our hands." Said a brute.

"No, we won't." Kitty clarified. "I'm stealing the info so you can sell it. Let me guess, Dimka, you are not that ambitious?"

Dimitri or the man sitting at the desk, chuckled. "Ever correct, my sister. Out of the two of us you have always been the better thief. We could sell this information to the highest bidder, and set our place in the big leagues here in Gotham." Sister? That explained why Kitty would steal stuff for this man. At least she wasn't a lover convinced this man loved her and wasn't using her. "The file will be at it's most vulnerable tomorrow night, you'll go then. Are we clear, Katya?"

"Crystal." Kitty said through her teeth as if she wished she could say something a little less that respectable to her brother. "I'll have it done, but this is the last time, Dmitri! I have worked too hard to be caught up in this life now! Not when I've worked so hard to leave it!"

Mary couldn't see the man's facial expression, but did see the wave of his hand, "Please, Katya. You do not just runaway from what you were born into. Accept your fate, Katya, The sooner the better. For you and your little dance studio." Mary probably palled at the same time as Kitty. He planned to use the studio against her. How low, but then again what did Mary expect from an up and coming mob boss in Gotham. "This will get us at the top of the map with Joker, Two-Face, and the others, now that we've taken care of that Red Hood."

...Wait, what?

And as she thought the words, A soft beeping came from her pocket. Crap! That was the emergency signal most likely coming from Jason. How the hell did these guys get the drop on him anyway, and why didn't he activate the signal earlier? Jason could be so hard to deal with sometimes. Mary cursed herself trying to stop the beeping, while hoping none in the other room could hear it.

"Quiet! What the hell is that sound?" Oh big crap! Mary silenced the emergency signal, and quickly pulled the the cord from the vent. She had about 4.3 seconds at the most to get the hell out of there, but going down the window they would see her and surely give chase. 2.6 seconds. Under the desk? No, they would find her and kill her in a heart beat. .5 seconds. Time was up, and the Group of men lead by Dmitri entered the room to find it empty.

"Check everywhere!" He barked orders at his men. They checked the mostly empty room but found nothing, still Dmitri was suspicious. He checked out the window and found no one on the ground below, nor anyone climbing the building up. To the sides he only found windows. Content that there was probably nothing there to begin with Dmitri ordered his men back to their post, not so much as sparing a glance into the room. It wouldn't have helped anyway as Mary wasn't in the room. The floor above a window Air conditioning unit stuck in it, and on top of that out of sight was the young Mary who peered out making sure the coast was clear before moving on. She needed to get to Jason, fast. Retrieving Kevin from the room they had broken into earlier, Mary put him in a cab before waking him up telling him that she was sending him back to the studio, and that she'll see him tomorrow. Of course, he protested, but his only answer was a car door slammed in his face. Putting on her Starling uniform in record time, she quickly informed everyone that she was on her way to Jason, and would meet up with the rest of them soon.

* * *

Jason cursed as he heard a loud thump coming from upstairs. He really wished those Russian Wannabes hadn't taken his arsenal away from him or else he would have just sent for one of the other to come and get him. They probably thought he was dying, since it was the emergency signal, but in reality he just didn't have another way of contacting them. He couldn't move or risked puncturing a lung, again, then he would be out for at least another month, and he was not about to go through being benched so soon again.

"Hood?" The women who saved him said looking up at the ceiling at the noise.

"Don't worry about it," He said to comfort her, "I'm sure it's just a friend of mine knocking out one of your daughters." The woman turned to him with scared eyes. "That's a good thing! They probably don't want to be seen here aiding me. They won't hurt you're daughters, they probably just used knock-out gas." The woman still regarded him cautiously. He sighed. This woman really saved his ass. Rosario as he later came to find out her name, is an Afro-Latina, shop owner in the east of gotham. Compared to other stores she had it really good and made a decent amount of money, not to mention she was under the Red hood's protection.

"Mom!" One of Rosario's daughters came running in, Lina he believed her name was. "The girls, they were-" With the sound of gas being released around Lina she fell to the ground, and stepping around her was the young, Starling. Purple and black costume similar to the one Nightwing wore, but fitted more for a feminine body. Her long black hair was braided coming around her shoulder and hanging there.

Starling surveyed the room quickly before fixing her domino masked gaze at Red Hood. "What the heck, Hood! I thought you had been captured or worse!" Jason almost laughed but the pain in his chest stopped.

"I'm just seriously injured is all." Jason assured. "Now can you take me to the clinic I think I may have broken a rib."

Mary lightly put her hand on his chest causing him to wince. "Maybe a lot more than a rib. Where's your car? I can drive you back."

"Around the corner, you should be able to find it." Hood said as he stood up leaning against the young girl, who could surprisingly hold his weight.

"Wait, Hood! What about my daughters-"

"They'll be fine." Starling cut her off. "They should all wake up within the hour."

"And what about those-" Rosario never to to finish her question as Red Hood sprayed the knock-out gas in her face causing her to fall to the ground.

"Thanks for the help, Rosario. We'll be in contact." Then the two vigilantes left.

Rosario woke up to all four of her daughters standing above her, only waking up minutes before her asking what happened. The eldest Lina kept quiet for good reason, and Rosario simply said that the dinner she had made them must have been bad. A lie, but ignorance is just another form of safety. The Hood though he protected her store she knew him to be dangerous, a criminal. So why was he working with Nightwing's sidekick? Rosario stopped herself. Best not to think too hard on these things before she figures something out that could get her killed.

* * *

"Okay, explain to me why you took a civilian into the HQ for the new Russian mobsters?" Nightwing asked his daughter.

"Well, really I didn't take him, he brought me." She clarified. Nightwing frowned and Starling winced. Not a good sign.

"I don't care who suggested to go along it was dangerous to bring him there, Starling! Our job is to protect the lives of innocents not endanger them."

"I tried to talk him out of going, I swear, but he said that if I didn't go with him he would go alone! He could have been killed if he went alone, so I went with him and put him out of commision when things got too dangerous. Plus, I planned on going anyway, I think I got a lead on those thefts that have been happening the past few weeks." Starling stared at her father. She didn't like it when they butted heads like this. It didn't happen often, only usually when she did something unconventional. Which was a lot.

Nightwing sighed. Truly, that was the best thing that could have been done in that situation, though she could have knocked him out before they got to that point, he can't really be mad, besides they have work that needed to be done.

"So what did you find?" Nightwing asked turning back to the computer in the bat bunker.

"Well, the thefts and that new Russian mob that's been bothering Jason are connected, and the thief pulling these heist is one of the dancers at my dance studio." Nightwing turned to her eyebrow raised. "I know, that's the same face I made. She's been stealing from the Gotham elite and museums and giving to the mob to sell among the the underworld. Over the past few months they have really climbed up in the underworld. They've been trying to steal territory from Jason, as well. They're the reason he's had a bunch of broken ribs."

Nightwing thought over what Starling had just told him, "I hate new and upcoming crooks. They think that they can take out the A-listers and move up in the underworld, very annoying, especially when they try to kill a hero. So what are they trying to steal now?"

"According the the conversation I just heard, information, but I think it's something big." Nightwing raised an eyebrow.

"What makes you say that?"

"They said and I quote, 'Langley will be eating out of the palms of our hands'. Langley is a common nickname for the CIA. What do they have that will get them a get out of jail free card with the CIA?"

"Good question, but honestly none of our business." Starling frowned. "Don't give me that look. I'm curious as well, but honestly the closer we get to CIA information the more we overstep our bounds as vigilantes. We need to get this information back to the CIA." Nightwing started typing on the computer pulling up a file on his CIA informant. A picture of a redheaded woman with blue eyes. Starling's father certainly has a type. The name on the computer read Evelyn Dracson.

In good judgment Starling didn't not comment on the woman's appearance instead returning the focus to the theft taking place tomorrow. "They plan on taking the info tomorrow."

"We can take them down then, Blackgate sure is going to be full of Russians."

"Wait, the girl performing the thefts, she's under coercion. Isn't there something we can do about that?" Starling asked. She liked Kitty, she really did.

Nightwing turned to her and patted her shoulder, "She made her choice she she decided to help the mob out. She could have left at anytime, Starling. If she commits the crime and she gets caught by the police there is nothing we can do. We'll have to take her down."

"But it isn't black and white like that!" Starling protested. Kitty was a good person, but her brother wasn't. It wasn't her fault.

"You're right, but even still." Nightwing paused. "I can't tell you how many times I have dealt with this situation, someone I liked, or even loved turns out to be involved with some sort of criminal activity. I had to go through it with a multitude of friends, girlfriends, and family." Though he left it unsaid it was clear who he was talking about, Jason, but Jason wasn't the only one who had strayed from the path, Cassandra had, so has Damian. Tim's time was probably coming. But what does one do in this situation? Betray that loved one and turn them in? Turn a blind eye? Reform them? Starling didn't know, but she did know one thing Kitty didn't deserve prison. She was just born into the wrong situations. Nightwing sighed, "Listen, I'll let you make the decision as to what happens to the girl. Each of us has had to make that choice time and time again. Heck, Bruce still makes that choice with Selina everytime she tries to steal something. You have to learn this lesson for yourself, it's not something I can teach you. You have until she's in police custody to make your choice, alright?"

"Alright." 24 hours to let a theft go free, or but her behind bars. When said like that the choice sounds easy, but when so much is at stake was it really that?

* * *

Three in the morning most of Gotham even the criminals were asleep. Even the vigilantes were doing they're last rounds of patrol before heading in for the night, and on her couch in her apartment sleeping was Kitty Collier, real name Katya Rasputin. Russian born thief of the up and coming Russian mob. Though she was very reluctant. Coming to Gotham for a fresh start she thought she could leave her family business by moving in one of the busiest cities in the world, no one would notice a school aged girl trying to keep her head down, but still her brother had found her. Using her dance studio as leverage he has been making do petty thefts and selling them at auctions to Gothams A and B list criminals. Thefts go from Jewels to weapons to information. Started activity 3 years ago at age 13. Thief Alias: Odile, The Black Swan.

That's what her file read. It seemed that Catwoman had run into this girl a couple of times, but did not deem her a threat in order to stop her. Her file was made from these encounters and the very little she told Selina during their encounters. The girl was about 13/14 when she had meet the Catwoman, but still she remembered her none the less. Kitty remembered being quite frightened by the older woman. She apparently didn't like people on her turf, understandable but still frightening. Starling had asked Catwoman about the girl, who did say she remembered her and agreed with Starling's sentiment that she didn't really deserve Blackgate. She could take care of herself there, but they both didn't want the teen to end up there. But what could Starling do? If Kitty does the heist, She has to bring her down. Oh, what to do what to do. If only the sleeping Kitty knew the amount of stress she was bringing the young girl.

Kitty's breathing became softer as she started to wake up. She quickly jolted up from her place on the couch and stared out onto the fire escape. "I know you're there, come out." She ordered.

"You're good." A voice floated into the room, "but not that good." As the lights turned on it was revealed that Starling, the origin of the voice, was not on the fire escape, but sitting on the kitchen counter eating some of her yogurt.

"Hey!"

"Sorry!" Starling put down the yogurt. "I saw the yogurt in the fridge, and I had to take some! I love yogurt!" She chirped. Kitty eyed the masked girl anxiously. Was she for real?

"You're one of those bats, aren't you? What are you, Nightwing Girl? Night Chick?"

"Starling! It's Starling Is that really so hard! I mean everywhere I go, it's always, 'Are you the new Batgirl?'" Starling's braid swung behind her back as she jumped off the counter and onto the floor. "I mean do they not see the nightwing symbol? Maybe I should have called myself Night-Girl or something or the other, at least they would get my name right in the papers. Well, it could be worse I could be Red Robin. People are still confusing him for Dr. Midnight. He's the smartest guy I know, but comes up with the least creative names ever and a horrible costume. Well, then again he works with Batman, I mean The Batcave, The Batmobile, The batcomputer, The batplane. Don't even get me started with him, I swear to god if we'd let him he would name his utility belt the Bat Belt. He almost did, I'm not joking. The man can intimidate Superman himself, but he is so corny you could almost die from the sheer embarrassment alone. This one time I was working with him and Robin, and it turns out he has a-"

"Umm, I would love to hear more about our Dark Knight's quirks, but what is a bat doing in my house?" Kitty asked. The girl's mouth ran a mile a minute.

"I came to talk to you, of course." Starling answered curtly. "I came to find out what a good girl like you is doing working for the mob." Kitty froze. "Didn't you really think I didn't know? I mean Why else would I be here?" She asked rhetorically. "Also try to keep your body language under control. I'm reading you like an open book." She pointed out. "You keep bouncing your leg, you're nervous, but not just because i'm here and you're a thief. I'm guessing it's stress from the heist you have planned tomorrow. Yes, I know about that, as well. You plan on giving the Russian mob government secrets to sell to other more powerful criminals for a quick buck, but you don't want to do it." Kitty turned to Starling in surprise. "I can tell. You're a good person, Kathrine. You don't have to do this."

Kitty shook her head, "No, the studio. They'll attack the studio if I don't do it."

"The studio is under my protection. Nothing will happen to it, so you can choose without any other force causing you to choose their side. Will you not give the information, or will you give it to them causing all sorts of damage?"

"But he's my brother..." Kitty started. "This has been my family business for years."

"But it doesn't have to be yours. You can make your own choices now, Kitty, but realize if you do continue with the heist I will be forced to take you down. Are we clear?" Starling asked.

"I understand." The phone rang causing Kitty to turn her head upon answering it and telling the person to hold she looked back up to find Starling gone. "I hope I make the right decision." From the roof tops Starling hoped she would as well.

* * *

The next day, unsurprisingly, Kitty did not show up for practice leaving Kevin and Mary to practice the bit they had learned from the day before.

"Real talk, Riri, what the hell happened yesterday when I passed out?" He asked.

Mary shrugged. "When we got into the building you hit your head. You passed out I carried you out and took you to a cab, remember." Mary said calmly lying to her best friend smoothly. She didn't like doing it, but it needed to be done.

"I remember that, but why did you push my into a taxi and order me home? That was a little weird, I mean you didn't get into the taxi with me, like you wanted to stay in on the east end. Also, how do you know your way around Gotham's east end. You just moved here like a year ago, and Your grandad is Bruce Wayne, you shouldn't even need to touch that side of Gotham let alone run around like you knew it better than your own home." He was almost too good, but luckily a little truth mixed in with a lie should do the trick.

"Actually, Bruce takes some of us to place his parents died each year." This was a lie, but honestly what Gothamite didn't know the tragic tale of Bruce Wayne who lost his parents at such a young age. Bruce preferred to be by himself when he visited the place where his parents died, and leave a pair of roses. She had only been there once when she had asked Bruce around the time she first got to Gotham why they did what they did. He had explained to her the story behind what created Batman, and how Batman inadvertently helped mold the rest of them. It was in that moment that Mary truly felt like Bruce was family to her. He had been nice to her, but kept a safe distant from the new addition. "Plus my Uncle Jason had called he knew I had snuck out and came to get me. Talk about major trouble, I've been grounded for a month."

Kevin gave the girl a skeptical look, "That sounds, pretty plausible, but then again so do all your other excuses. You're hiding something from me, Riri. I'll find out what it is eventually." Mary paled because honestly he just might. "Don't worry though I'll wait until you tell me. Whatever it is though I hope it's important enough to keep from the people you care about." If it wasn't you would know by now, Mary thought, you would be the first person I tell.

Before Mary could answer him back with another lie her phone rang.

"Just go." Kevin told her, "Family emergency, or whatever. I get just go." It broke Mary's heart, but she smiled a grateful smile at him before she sped away. It was a shame that her leaving with lame excuses had become such a norm that Kevin didn't even ask for an explanation anymore. Either way, she couldn't think about that right now because Mary's life had to be put on hold while Starling came out to play.

* * *

Kitty Collier had made her decision. She had chosen her brother, after all he would choose her, right? Stealing the info from the computer in the Ferris building wouldn't be that hard. Security would always be a pain in the ass but she had scored the CEO's passcard so the odds of not getting caught were in her favor, or they would have been if Starling's promise wasn't looming over her.

_**"But realize, if you do continue with the heist I will be forced to take you down. Are we clear?" Starling asked.** _

Kitty had a sinking feeling that the young vigilante would keep her promise, and that it wouldn't only be the young girl coming to take her in. Starling would bring Nightwing, or worse Batman. He wouldn't have any mercy for her, after what her brother did to the Red Hood, he wouldn't hold back on his petty thief of a sister. Kitty was scared and rightfully so, but she still needed to do this if not for her, then for her brother's love.

_**"But he's my brother..." Kitty started. "This has been my family business for years."**_

_**"But it doesn't have to be your's. You can make your own choices now, Kitty." **_

Of course now of all time's Starling's words would ring through her ears, right as she was about to download the information for Dmitri. Kitty took a deep breath and began downloading the information. It was now or never.

Up in the rafters hiding in the shadows was one of Gotham's best, Nightwing, and at his side the ever faithful, Starling. They had quietly watched as the girl snuck into the building and made her way to steal the information. Nightwing pulled out a Wing-Ding ready to stop the girl from taking the download.

"Wait." Starling stopped him. "You said I have till she is in custody to make my choice whether to help or not, right?" She asked her mentor.

"Yes, I did, but I thought you talk to the girl last night?" Nightwing asked not taking his eyes away from the young thief below them.

"I did, just give me all my time." Starling answered cryptically. "I want to see what she does once she has the information." she clarified. Nightwing nodded understandingly and watched with his young protégé as the young girl finished the download and snuck off into the night.

"Come on." Starling urged, "We're about to take care of the thief Odile, and the Russian mob in one swoop. Jason will thank us later." Nightwing grinned at the prospect. This would do a lot of good to Gotham, and stop Jason from getting whatever aspect of revenge he had in mind for them.

"Let's go." Nightwing agreed, and as quietly as they arrived they left without so much a trace that they were even there.

* * *

"Katya, Katya!" Dmitri greeted his sister with a grin and a hug. "I knew you could do it! See I never lost faith in my oh-so-talented sister."

"I got the info, no issue. Dimka, is this really alright? After this you won't threaten the dance studio anymore, right?" Kitty asked. Looking at her brother with hopeful eyes. She was still in his embrace. It felt good to have her brother on the same page finally.

"Of course, my sister! It's good to have you back. Now with this we can truly become Gotham's worse." Dmitri held out his hand in order to retrieve the drive, but Kitty just stared at him.

"What do you mean, good to have me back, Dmitri!" Kitty almost yelled outraged.

"I thought I was going to have to disown you with the way you were acting, Katya. Trying to reform, and all of this normal life nonsense. I had hoped this would pull you out of that faze."

"Faze?" Kitty echoed. "Disown me? What are you talking about?" Kitty asked voice rising with each word

"Stop it, Katya, this is our fate. Whether you like it or not you are a thief. You had been acting so, so cantankerous I had no idea what to do with you. I was going disown you, but our uncle in Russia stopped me saying it was probably just a faze, and our father went through the same thing when he was your age. I'm glad with a slight push you're out of it now, and we can be a family again."

"Disown me?" Kitty echoed again. She sounded like a broken record mind unable to process "Disown me! How dare you!" Kitty slapped her brother right in the face. "I would do anything for you, Dimka! We are blood, and blood does not give up on blood like that. You Zmey! You serpant! You snake! You don't do that to family, even after I left I would have run back to you at a moments notice because I love you, Dmitri. Disown me? No, how about I disown your treacherous ass. I got this information to prove I still love you, Dmitri, even after everything, yet you stand there and tell me you were about to disown me. You terrible, Dmitri. I knew that yet instead of doing something I ran, now I won't let you hurt anyone else, not with the information I got for you." Kitty put the drive on the ground and stomped on it breaking it into little pieces. "If you want the information so bad, go and get it yourself. I'm done with you, Dmitri."

"Couldn't have said it any better myself." A deep voice said. Looking around they finally found the voice's owner to be none other than Gotham Vigilante, Nightwing, and behind him waving at the girl was Starling with a big smile on her face.

"As true to my promise, we're bringing you down, Kitty." Starling announced. "You and this whole organization."

Dmitri turned to his sister, "You brought them here!"

"Hell no! I'm not a betraying bastard like you!" She screamed back. "Go ahead, Starling. I can see now you were right, and I've made my choice. Goodbye, Dmitri, if you every truly need something I'm only a call away." She could never fully turn her back on him. Dmitri was family, and while he maybe ready to leave her behind she could never do the same to him.

"Katya!" He screamed as she walked away. "Katya! Get back here! Don't walk away from me! Katya! Katya!" He screamed in vain as she was gone.

Starling tapped his shoulder politely breaking him from his screaming fit. "So, sir, how are we going to do this? Easy way or hard way?" she asked.

Dmitri pulled out his gun and aimed it at Starling's forehead, "You little bitch!"

Starling sighed, "Hard way it is then." And she promptly kicked him where the sun don't shine, and as he fell to his knees writhing in pain she punched him in the face knocking the hysterical Russian out. "They always choose the hard way don't they, Nightwing?"

"That they do." He agreed and together they proceeded to take out the trash.

* * *

"Hello, Hello, Hello again!" Starling chirped. Kitty was surprised how the girl ended up sitting on the edge of the roof before her after she had just saw the girl taking down her brother's mob.

"Starling!" Kitty said in surprise, "What happened to Dmitri?" She asked. She would be lying if she said she wasn't worried about him.

Starling frowned, "He's in police custody. He's looking at a lot of years in Black Gate, Kitty."

"I know." She said. Silence followed before Starling broke it.

"What are you going to do now?" She asked. Secretly she had hoped Kitty would stay and continue to be a member of the dance studio.

"I don't know, but I know I can't stay here." She said looking at the night sky. No stars, she noticed. You could never see stars in Gotham. The city was too bright. Kitty never realized how much she had missed them since she had moved here.

"What? Why?" Starling whined. "I like you. You should stay!" Starling answered honestly. Kitty chuckled.

"You act very old for your age, but you have to be about nine. I catch a glimpse of that age, but then it goes away like it's too scared to come out. I meet another little girl like that. She has the air of a princess, and is beautiful like a star. You remind me of her, actually. My only regret is that I will have to leave her and everyone else. I won't be able to see them grow as dancers. I won't be able to see that girl perform the dance I choreographed. I never even finished teaching her the dance." Kitty looked at starling. "I have to go because my brother will most likely send people after me. He may be in jail, but he still has connection. My best bet is to get out of the country. Paris, is a thief's favorite place I hear."

"Do you need anything?" Starling asked truly concerned. "Plane tickets, money, new identity, I can get it for you." Kitty laughed.

"No, thank you. You have helped me more than you ever know. I need to do this on my own now. Goodbye, Starling, and again thank you." Kitty jumped from rooftop to rooftop away from the young vigilante, and Starling watched till the girl was out her horizon.

"Do you think I did the right thing, daddy?" Starling asked as Nightwing came into view.

"I think so, you helped everyone you could, and stopped a mob from gaining power in Gotham. You've done good work, Starshine."

"What about, Kitty. She has to start all over now. She can't stay here with the people who truly care about her."

"People come and go, Starling. Kitty just happen to be one of those people. Now she is going to find a place on her own and find new people who care about, and she will be fine. She's strong, she'll bounce back in no time." Nightwing said.

Starling hugged Nightwing and looked up at him, "You really think so?"

"I know so." He assured with a smile.

"Great." Starling released him from the hug before diving off the side of the building, " Then, last person to the Bat bunker is a rotten egg!" She sang. NIghtwing dived after her. Sometimes you have days where nobody gets hurt, and he was glad today was one of them.

* * *

The next day when Mary had gotten to dance practice everyone was crowded into Ms. Michelle's office, all reading a parchment over her shoulder. Ms. Michelle had tears in her eyes, as did some of the older dancers.

"Mary." Someone whispered her name. It was Kevin. "Over here." He beckoned her into the corner. He didn't look all to happy infact he looked rather upset.

"What's going on?" Mary asked. "I thought we had dance practice? Why are we all in here?" Mary whispered.

" just got a letter on her desk from Kitty. It says she's not coming back ever." Kevin informed. So, Kitty did say goodbye at least in some form to the people at the dance studio.

"Really!?" Mary asked feigning to be shocked. "What happened? Does it say why she left?"

Kevin shook his head, "Not really, just says it wasn't safe for her to stay with us, and that she needs to strike out on her own. She did say something about the two of us though."

"What did she say?" After hearing what Kitty had to say last night, she was curious as to what she would address to her.

"That I need to keep my head from getting too big, and that you, Mary, will be the brightest star that Michelle Bissonette's Dance has ever had. That's some complement, Riri. She's only really meet you once, I wonder what you did made her remember you so much?" Kevin mused. Mary to wondered if Kitty had figured out her secret identity, but the brushed off the thought. If she did know, then Mary doubt she would tell. Kitty was a good person, and where ever she is now she's going to be doing something good. That Mary was sure of.

* * *

_Final thoughts: _

_FInal word count:9,359(still a WTF) _

_I know it took me a while to write this. Honestly, i wrote this all together in about 2 days but those days were spaced out. I only planned to take a week off, but then my mom dropped the ball that I was going to orlando for a vacation with my cousins. There was internet but it was incredible slow I didn't want to risk the chance of writing all of that and something go wrong and it doesn't post. Also, Thanks to Victory Goddess for her review. No, really thank you, last chapter was probably my worst view wise, but your review helped me get past that. _

_Also I noticed that while doing research that the new 52 has everyone's ages screwed up, __So, I do have a list of everyone's ages and birthday's along with Zodiac signs. Damian actually doesn't have a canon birthday as of yet, so I gave him one. Mary's is in December! She seemed like a winter baby to me. These ages are the starting ages for everyone from the beginning of the story. _

_Bruce: Age(42) Pisces, Feb 19_

_Barbara: age(29) __Aquarius, Feb 18 _

_Selina: Age(39, not that she admits it) Aquarius, Feb 2_

_Dick: Age(26, making him 18 when Mary was conceived) Aries, March 21(He's a spring baby remember!) _

_Jason: Age(20, yes canonically Jason is about 6 years younger than Dick) Leo, Aug 2 _

_Cassandra: Age(19, I liked her better younger than Jason, I believe that she is actually older than him) Aquarius, Jan 26 _

_Stephanie: Age(18) Leo, Aug 18 _

_Tim: Age(17) Cancer, July 19(Jason, Steph, and Tim are summer babies) _

_Damian:Age(10) Aries, April 15_

_Mar'i: Age(8) Sagittarius, Dec 10 _

_Alfred: Age( infinity) he doesn't age, He is immortal_

_Now all of these birthdays are canon except for Damian and Mar'i. Time has skipped since these ages, they are about a year to two years older, actually by next chapter it will be two years. I hoped these helped finding these and doing the math for the ages took a full night of me not writing. _

_Next chapter: Night of Owls _


	8. Nightwing and Starling 2

**Nightwing &amp; Starling 2**

_Night of Owls _

The family in front of the screens watched intently as the dark haired Ballet dancer did her first solo number. The song was some Emo rock band noise with a fast pace and lyrics that screamed about injustice. The music here was not what the family was focusing on. It was the beautiful ballet dancer hitting every beat with a kick of her leg, a flip, or a turn. Absolutely flawless. The crowd cheers as she leaves the stage. The picture on the screen changes to a hip hop duet with the same girl, and another young boy. It was a hip hop dance, showing off the girls acrobatics, and break dancing. The picture changes again, but this time it is not of the beautiful dancer. Instead it's Gotham's newest vigilante, the young Starling, as she flips into the air grabs a young boy from falling out of window, lands, and returns him to his mother. Her long black braid swinging ever present behind her. The family members looked towards each other, all giving approving nods. It had been decided. The head of the family takes a black leather bound book from the table beside him, and on a clean page writes the name Mary Grayson, then crosses out the name before her, Richard Grayson. Welcome to The Court of Owls our new Talon, Mary Grayson.

* * *

_Happy birthday, Damian._ Mary thought quietly as she sat in the chair of the Batcomputer. She looked at the time. Yes, Midnight. It was Damian's birthday, but he was too busy at the moment to notice. Busy having another screaming match with his father. It seemed the older the now 12 year old got the less and less Bruce could control him, though he had always had a hard time with that. Puberty, according to Jason anyway, was causing Damian to act wild and rebellious. Mary could honestly see it. Damian, if possible, had gotten even more brooding and Bruce was at his wits end. He couldn't deal with the boy, not now anyway. Damian had been sneaking out, missing patrol, skipping school. Things that Bruce had to deal with Dick doing at this age, Damian was now echoing, and Bruce has had enough.

The current argument was over the fact that Damian had skipped out on the first part of Patrol. Batman had a mission planned for them, and Robin not being there really messed up the plan. Still, the mission had to go on, and that was why Mary was sitting there watching this fight. Starling had taken his place on the mission, and things were going well until he came barging in thinking Batman had gone in alone, and had almost gotten all three of them killed. Boy, did Bruce let him have it when they had gotten back to the cave. Mary had to admit, she was a little upset, but when Damian had started yelling back at his father Mary had lost her anger. She hated it when they fought, mostly because of the tension afterwards. Most of the time, when they got like this Mary and her father would excuse themselves as soon as possible, or Dick would stop the fighting himself with a quick comment to Damian, but tonight Dick was not there.

"That's quite enough of that, Master Bruce, Master Damian." Alfred's timing had always been perfect. "Master Bruce, I do believe you have work that need to be done, and Master Damian you and Miss Mary have school in the morning. I suggest you both go and catch as many hours of sleep you have left." Not needing to be told twice Mary booked it up the stairs and out of the Batcave, but Damian and Bruce seemed to have gotten into a staring contest, neither one ready to give up. "Now." Alfred ordered. At the same time both Wayne's broke the harsh glare they were giving each other, and headed to their respective places.

Alfred sighed, If only they realized how alike they are, if only.

* * *

Alicia Royal stepped onto the Gotham Prep's campus. The school would have to do, for now anyway till she got what she wanted. The ten year old followed the man who had introduced himself to the young lady as the principle. Alicia smiled, this was going to be all too easy.

"Alright, that is everything you need to know about Gotham Prep, Miss Royal. You'll be shadowing a student for a week till you get the hang of things around here, is that fine with you?" The principal asked the young girl.

"Do you have any new students who could show me around, " Alicia asked shyly, "If it isn't too much trouble. I've never been in a school before I've always had private tutors, so excuse me if I'm a little nervous. A new student would help me feel more comfortable because they know what it's like to be new." The principle regarded the girl with pity. Poor little thing, probably doesn't have any friends her own age, the principle thought.

"No worries my dear, I'll see what I can do."

It turns out that the most recent entrance to the grade was over a year ago, she wasn't new anymore, but she would do.

* * *

When Mary Grayson was called to the office she sighed out loud. This was the fourth time this week. Every time that Damian snuck out, and skipped class they would call her out of class. Question her to death as to if she knew where he was, which she never did Damian wasn't an idiot he would never tell her even if she cared enough to ask. Where ever he was going she hoped it was worth the fights with his father. She really hoped Damian would grow out of this faze soon, because she was missing something important in class, and she refused to be behind.

"Alright, I can already tell you, that whatever idiotic thing, Damian has done or gone to I have no part in. So, can I just go to class?" Mary said as soon as she walked through the door.

"That's all well and fine, Miss Grayson, but we didn't call you here for that." Mary looked up in surprise to find another young girl her age sitting in the principle's office. Her hair was as pale as moonlight and her eyes were Hazel. When looking into her eyes Mary almost found herself drowning in them, as if they were sucking her in. She was a very pretty girl, but Mary wondered why she was in here if it wasn't because of Damian?

"I'm so sorry." Mary apologized. "I shouldn't have assumed something like that. What is it that you need?" Mary asked politely.

"This is Alicia Royal. She will be attending our school, and as asked if someone would let her shadow them for a few days so she can get a feel for the school. You don't mind, do you?" the principal asked. Mary looked the girl in her hazel eyes, and was agreeing before she even thought about it.

"Great!" Alicia smiled a big smile at her. "I can already tell we are going to be the best of friends"

Mary immediately smiled back, "We are going to be the best friends!" She answered quickly. Mary stopped. What? she thought to herself. She only just meet the girl and was proclaiming that they were going to be best friends. Mary didn't even get along with girls in general, she had more guy friends then she could count, but the only girl friends she had were from the studio. How can this girl already have Mary liking her? Mary brushed it off. The girl seemed nice enough, why not try to befriend her. Maybe her body recognized her wanting the girl as a friend.

"Good." The principal said. "You can take her to class now, Mary. Make sure everyone is nice to her."

"Oh, I don't think that will be a problem. Mary, will take great care of me, right?"

Mary found herself answering before she even thought about it, "Of course, I will take care of you. Don't worry we're going to be friends just like she said."

"See." Alicia said. "We should get going. Come along, Mary." And obediently Mary followed out behind the girl.

The whole day Mary found that she was rather fond of the new girl, Alicia. Alicia was always praising her, and telling her how amazing she was, and with each compliment came such an amazing feeling that whenever Alicia asked Mary to do something Mary would jump at the chance to do it. Alicia was such a good friend, she showed Mary how to put on make-up, and how to flat iron her hair, and all the things Mary thought to be frivolous, but now Mary wanted to do everything Alicia wanted to do. Mary was in a dream, and it was wonderful. Alicia was amazing, and Mary wanted to be just like her.

"You have such a wonderful face structure." Alicia commented. "If we were at my house with all of my make-up I could really show you how pretty you are with it. You are so beautiful, Mary." With the compliment came the high Mary had been craving.

"Thank you."

"You must come over after school." Alicia ordered. "I have to introduce you to my family." The cloud Mary had been floating on the whole day seemed to disappear at the mention of after school. Mary shook her head clearing the imaginary cobwebs from her mind. Why has the whole day seemed to be hazy like a dream you can't remember?

"I-I-I" Mary struggled to remember why Going to Alicia's house after school was such a bad idea.

"Mary!" Another voice called. Running up was Kevin Thompson. "You're coming home with me today, remember?" He said, and suddnely it all came back to her. It was friday. They had a competition tomorrow. Kevin's dad was driving them to Manhattan for the competition.

"Yes, I remember now." Mary said. "I can't believe I forgot. I'm sorry, Alicia, I can't come after all." Alicia frowned, not at all pleased that mary had a prior engagement. Mary found she didn't like it when Alicia frowned. It seemed odd on such an angelic face.

"That's fine for now." Alicia said displeasure dripping through her tone. "We can make plans when you come back." Alicia looked at her watch. "It seems that it's time for me to take my medicine. I will see you in class, Mary?" Asked as a question, but it sounded like an order to Kevin's ear.

"Of course, Alicia." Mary answered, and the blonde girl walked off.

"What the heck was that?" Kevin asked once they were alone. Mary gave him a confused look.

"What are you talking about?" She asked.

"The whole, 'of course, Alicia.' thing" He said mimicking Mary's voice. "Come on, Riri. You've been glued to that new girl's hip since she walked in this morning." Mary glared at her best friend.

"Her name is Alicia!" She snapped. Kevin held his hands up in surrender.

"Sorry, I know. It's just weird. Mary, you came into class with this glassy look in your eyes, and introduced her like she was your long lost sister or something. Is everything alright? I'm not going to lie, I'm a little worried." Mary's glare faded at the young boy's concern.

"I'm fine, and I'm sorry I yelled at you. It's just that Alicia is really nice, and you should get to try to know her a little better." Mary said. She was oddly over protective of Alicia all of a sudden.

"Okay, I'll try for you, but I make no promises. Something about the girl just rubs me the wrong way." Kevin said.

"I think you're just being paranoid, but thank you for at least trying to be her friend." Mary smiled at him.

"Paranoia is good. It keeps you alert." Kevin said with a grin.

Mary groaned, "You sound like my grandpa." Kevin laughed.

"That's something Bruce Wayne has said?" He asked. "Just what kind of a man is he?"

"A very complicated one," Mary said with a sigh, "Let me tell this one time..." And the two walked down the hallway laughing at the stories they shared. With one look one could tell that Mary Grayson and Kevin Thompson were the closest of friends, and Alicia Royal who was watching the two intently frowned.

This boy is going to be a problem she thought to herself. Alicia didn't like sharing, but it didn't matter soon she would have Mary all to herself, and nobody would be able to stand in her way.

* * *

The next week Kevin had kept his promise and was trying to befriend Alicia, but it seemed she didn't want him to be her friend.

"Why are you even here, you flunky?" She said once Mary was not in their presence. Kevin glared at the girl.

"So, the snake in the grass shows it's true colors? I was wondering when you were going off of good behavior?" Okay, so he hadn't been trying that hard. "Where was Mary yesterday, she didn't come to practice." Kevin asked. "I'm guessing she was with you."

Alicia smiled a sly smile at him, "Of course she was. Jealous?"

Kevin laughed a sarcastic laugh, "Why would I be jealous of a two-bit ugly, bleach dyed wannabe. I just want to know what you want with Mary?" he said seriously.

"What I want with her?" Alicia feigned innocence. "Why, I want nothing more than her friendship. Is that so hard to believe?"

"Yes," Kevin answered bluntly "You can't be after her money, the powers may not be as rich as bruce Wayne, but you still have money. You can't be after social ties for the same reason, your family is as old as the Waynes, so answer me. What do you want Mary to do for you? It has to be something that only Mary can do alone." Kevin deduced.

"You know I don't understand why someone as great as Mary hangs out with some low stature, money grubbing, low life whose family got rich stealing from the original families of Gotham. It's a pity, someone of Mary's league shouldn't even be allowed anywhere near you scum. I mean look where the Thompsons are now, only one son who flunked the 6th grade, I mean how stupid can you get?"

"Hey!" Kevin screamed standing up catching the attention of everyone in the lunchroom. "You listen here, you rich manipulative, little bitch! Yeah, I may have flunked the 6th grade but I had my reasons. Also, leave Mary the hell alone, I don't know what exactly you want from her but if you hurt her I swear to god I will fucking kill you! And I don't need any grief from some girl, who thinks she knows me, about my family! Go to hell, Alicia Royal!" The sound of something hitting the floor brought Kevin out of his rage. Turning her found Mary standing there opened mouthed.

"Kevin?" She asked in disbelief

"Mary, It's not what you-"

"Oh, Mary he's been so mean to me the past few days," Alicia to Kevin's surprise now had tears streaming down her face as she cupped her face in her hands as she bawled into them. "I didn't know how to tell you because I knew how much you liked him, but he's been so horrible. See? You heard him right? He's been telling me mean things like that all week. Mary, I can't stand it anymore!" Alicia wailed.

Normally, Kevin might have applauded Alicia on her acting skills because right now she was so believable that he almost believed he had been bullying her for a week. Honestly, she was so good, she could win an oscar, but he was so pissed that he didn't realize her plan before. Alicia Royal had fucking baited him into a fight knowing Mary would walk in just at the right time, well wrong time for Kevin. Oh she was good, but kevin wasn't having any of this Mary would be pissed at him for a while but he'd rather that then let her fall into this girl's hands.

"You baited me!" Kevin screamed at the girl.

"Mary, he's trying to push everything on me! I haven't done anything wrong. I told you, that he was from a family of thieves, and murderers! You can't trust him!" That was the last straw. Kevin would have ignored the comment, but no one talks about his family like that. He wasn't going to take that from anyone, especially not this girl trying to steal Mary away from him. He raised his hand to slap the girl straight in her face but found it suddenly pulled behind him threatening to break.

"Don't you dare touch Alicia!" Mary said as she pulled back tighter on his arm. Kevin winced in pain.

"Mary, you have to listen to me-" But before he could finish she pushed him away, and he landed hard on the floor.

"I don't want to hear it." Mary growled as she looked down. "You hurt Alicia, Kevin! You promised to be nice to her, but you lied. Now, you'll stay away from Alicia." Mary kicked Kevin straight in the face hearing the satisfying crunch of his nose breaking. "And you'll stay away from me."

* * *

"What do you mean she broke Kevin's nose!" Dick yelled on the computer the screen. He was currently on video chat with Bruce. That didn't sound like Mary at all. She loved the boy to death. Dick had meet him once or twice, sweet kid, with a good heart, and watches out for Mary. Really, couldn't see why Mary would ever try to hurt him.

"I was surprised, as well, when I heard it. I thought she and that boy were close?" Bruce said.

"They are." Dick confirmed. "Since day one. Mary was always 'kevin this and kevin that'. She wouldn't hurt him."

"Unless he did something to her." Bruce said. "She was protecting a new student from him is what the school says, but still this seems very out of character for her to hit anyone outside of uniforms. She's very good at keeping the two separate when she can." Bruce mused. She had been acting odd lately, skipping Dance practice, acting spacey. Not her usual self.

Dick sighed, "Tell her she's off of patrols till I get back . Where is she now?" Dick asked.

"In her room, crying her eyes out. I don't think what she did really hit her until we got back to the manor. She says she barely even remembers doing it, that it's all kind of hazy, but that's normal in a fit of rage."

"True." Dick nodded in agreement. "Still, watch out for her, Bruce. I'll be back next week. Cass and I still have some work to be done here, when I get back I'll really look into this. Bruce only nodded as the screen went dark. Bruce had a bad feeling, and if there was one thing he learned after all these years is that to trust your gut. Bruce reached into his pocket, and pulled out his phone.

"Hello? Selena, yeah. I need you to look into something for me. Your usual fee, of course. Just keep your ear to the ground for something major. I know, Thank you." And Bruce hung up. Yes, something was happening deep within Gotham and he was going to find out what it was.

* * *

"Wait, Mary!" Alicia called out to the girl who continued to avoid the girl in the hallway. "Mary, please talk to me." Finally Mary turned around.

"What?" She asked angrily "Because of you I hurt Kevin! I don't know what you did, but I don't think we should be friends anymore, Alicia." Mary said. After thinking about it at home, Mary had wondered what had changed in her life to cause her to hurt Kevin. The only answer she could think of was Alicia. Everything was fine before she showed up, and then she came in between the two of them. Mary should have never let it happen. Kevin probably would never forgive her, and she wouldn't blame him if he hated her now. Only one thing was clear, Alicia was a big problem.

"I didn't do anything, Mary." Alicia said. "You kicked him all on your own. I wonder if he'll ever forgive you." Mary bite her lip. "But don't worry, Mary, I'm still here for you." Mary turned around and started walking away.

"Yeah, I'm going to pass." She said.

"Come one, Mary we were so good together. You were so perfect. Don't let this one little thing ruin our friendship."Mary could feel her mind getting hazier and hazier the more she talked to Alicia. "Don't be angry with me. Please, Let's be friends again."

"I won't be angry at you." Mary said words flowing out of her mouth as if she had forgotten yesterday's events. "We'll always be friends, Alicia." The words said as if they were rehearsed for a play. No real emotion behind them.

"Good. Let's walk to class together." Alicia ordered lightly with a smile.

"Of course, Alicia." Mary said that glassy look returning in her eyes as she followed the blonde girl down the hallway.

Around the corner watching careful was none other than Kevin, nose swollen but other than that he was relatively fine. Kevin had hoped to talk to Mary, get her out of Alicia's clutches. Mary was almost free, but it seemed she couldn't escape Alicia on her watched intently as Mary did everything that the girl asked her to, and seemed quite pleased and happy doing it. It was like Alicia had drugged Mary or something, kevin thought. Something was wrong, and Kevin knew he couldn't save fix it on his own.

* * *

Mary had skipped dance practice for the 6th time in a row to go to Alicia's house. Alicia's house was no where near the size of the manor, but still it was large. Alicia's family seemed to adore Mary, and treated her the same way that Alicia treated her compliments that gave Mary that slight high. The ones that made her want to do anything to please these people. They were so nice to her, and so sweet. She wished they were more people so when she got to Alicia's house she found it being set up for a grand party.

"Alicia, I see you brought Mary." Mrs. Royal said with a smile. Mrs. Royal was the definition of a trophy wife, long legs, blonde, and a pretty face. She looked a lot like Alicia, and they had similar personalities. Mary liked her. She liked all of the Royals actually from Mr. Royal to Alicia's younger brother, Roy. Mary loved all 6 Royals, they were good to her so in return she must be good to them.

"Hello, Mrs. Royal, What's going on? Are you setting up for a party?" Mary asked.

"Oh, yes we are." Mary was about to excuse herself to leave, but Mrs. Royal stopped her. "Honey, you must stay. You are so amazingly beautiful that we must introduce you to all of our friends. Don't worry about what you have to wear, you can borrow one of Alicia's dresses. Please stay, I insist."

Mary only blushed, and stuttered a thank you before running up the stairs after a grinning Alicia. Mrs. Royal smiled, Oh yes, Mary was perfect. She was sure of it.

The party had started a couple of hours after Alicia and Mary had gotten home from school. The whole party seemed to be infatuated with Mary, giving all sorts of praises and compliments, and Mary loved every minute of it. They were all so polite, and Mary's head was spinning. All she could remember were the smiles, the smiles that blurred together as the compliments came. Mary could feel her love for this crowd growing and growing as the hours went on, but Mary was missing something. She had to go home soon, she remembered. Curfew, yes her curfew! She needed to get home before curfew.

"Ali-Alicia," Mary could barely get the girls name out, "I-I Home, Leave-curfew." The words seemed to escape the ability to make functioning sentences, the chatter in the room grew making Mary dizzier. Curfew, Bruce would be upset if she missed Curfew.

"Leave?" Alicia asked as if the thought was outrageous. "Oh no, Mary, You can't leave just yet. Don't you love it here? You love it here, you want to to stay with us." Alicia said.

"I love it here. I want to stay with you." Mary echoed back. She completely forgot about her curfew that she was now sure to miss.

Alicia grinned, "Great, but there's only one way you can truly stay with us, Mary, is if you pledge your allegiance. Don't you feel good, don't you love it here? You can stay with us forever. If you don't pledge we can't stay with you. We love you so much, Mary. Do you want us to leave?"

Mary panicked. Leave? No, not an option. She couldn't leave. She didn't want to leave. She loved it here with everyone. If they left here, she could never feel so good again. The sweet bliss, would be gone from her forever.

"No!" Mary shouted. "Don't go. I'll do anything! Please don't leave." Mary begged. Alicia gave a sly cat-like smirk.

"Come with me." Alicia led Mary to the back room. The room was dark only lit by candles, and in the room stood people, people from the party though now they had on white mask covering their face. "Mary, has agreed to pledge." Alicia told the people in the room. They said nothing only watched as the Alicia pushed the girl into a sit in front of them. They watched her as if she were something to eat.

"Mary Grayson, You must pledge allegiance to us, to serve us, to please us, to follow us in all things forever. Mary Grayson do you take the pledge?" Mary was too far gone to turn back now. "Do you pledge yourself Court of Owls?" Mary said nothing looking towards Alicia for confirmation on what to do. Alicia nodded, and Mary accepted the goblet being handed to her. "Then, Mary Grayson, drink and become our new Talon." Mary didn't hesitate because with this she could stay with them. She could be forever with the court, they loved her as she loved them.

"Let us usher in a new age within Gotham City, The age of the Court. The return of the Court. The Death of Batman!" It was done. Mary Grayson would become the new Talon, and the Courts revenge against Batman has begun.

* * *

The change was almost instantaneous. Mary, in a day, had turned into Alicia with black hair. Mary traded in her trademark large green bow for a thick, white headband, and she had gotten horribly pale. Pale, as if she had not seen the sun ever in her life. Not only had Mary changed in physical appearance she changed in personality, as well. The few friends she did have she no longer spoke to, after three days Kevin had enough.

"Mary!" He grabbed the girl as she was walking down the hallway by herself. He pushed her into a corner away from prying eyes. "What the hell is wrong with you?" He asked. "I thought you were done with Alicia? You haven't been to practice and we have a competition this Saturday, Mary. Tell me what's wrong, please." Kevin begged. Mary glared at the young boy.

"You'll get me in trouble if you don't let me go." She said. She struggled in his hold but he only held on tighter.

"In trouble?" he echoed "with who?" Mary didn't answer him. "What is that little devil child doing to you, Riri? That's it I'm telling your dad, Damian, , somebody! That you've been acting weird, something is wrong with you. What is Alicia Royal doing to you?"

"Is that anyway to treat my friend, Kevin Thompson?" Alicia Royal said. In surprise Kevin let go of Mary, and she ran behind Alicia as if hiding from Kevin.

"I'm not going to ask this again, Royal pain in my ass, What are you doing to Mary?" Kevin hissed.

Alicia caressed Mary's face in her hands, "I've only perfected her. She's fine." Alicia then addressed Mary, "And you I thought I told you to stop talking to this filth."

"I-I-I'm sorry, Alicia. I was getting your books from your locker and he surprised me." Mary squeaked. It was out of character for her to act this timid. Kevin was disgusted at the sight of the Mary before. THis wasn't his Mary, his Mary never squeaked. Mary was too confident to be timid like that.

"I don't won't you're pitiful excuses! Why didn't you break away from him, and follow orders?"

"I-I-I couldn't" She stuttered. "I would have had to actually hurt him to do that, and my father said-"

"I don't care what your father said! I told you to do something and you better do it to the best of you ability! You act like such filth! I won't allow it!" Alicia raised her hand as if to slap Mary across the face. Mary closed her eyes bracing herself for the reprimand she had gotten so many times in the last couple of days, but it never came. Kevin just in time had stopped Alicia midway from striking Mary in the face.

"How dare you try to hit her." and in response he backhanded slapped Alicia the same way she was about to do Mary, but before he could tell the girl for the last time to leave him and Mary alone, Mary's hand made contact with his throat, hard. Kevin gasped for air while clutching his neck in pain. She had jabbed him in the neck. Mary had actually jabbed him in the neck. Kevin almost couldn't believe it. She seemed so scared of Alicia a minute ago, but was now protecting the girl who had almost slapped her. Kevin was sure this wasn't the first time this week that Alicia had reprimanded the girl this way. Mary didn't even like to play fight, let alone let anyone hit her. Something was wrong. Kevin was scared, really scared. This is worse than I thought, he thought to himself.

"Well, we'll see you in class, Thompson, that is when you can get a hold of yourself. Maybe you should go to the nurse for that cough." Alicia advised sarcastically. Kevin glared at her as she took Mary and walked away from him, but before they were out of earshot he heard Alicia whisper to Mary.

"Remember who you belong to, girl. You belong to the court, but most of all you belong to me." It was officially Kevin was sure that girl had done something to Mary. Something that normal people couldn't deal with. Kevin needed Batman, or maybe Nightwing, hell he would settle for Robin, but he had no way of contacting this masked men, so he went to the next best thing.

* * *

After class Damian Wayne was surprised to see Kevin Thompson standing by his locker in the third year's hallway. He was supposed to be in the first year hallway of the middle school section. Damian deemed Mary had brought him with her. She probably forgot her homework in his school bag again, or maybe she wanted his help after school, but oddly Mini Grayson was no where to be found.

"Thompson." Damian greeted. "If you're here Small Grayson must not be far away." but when Thompson looked up Damian knew something was wrong, and if Kevin Thompson had came to him that meant something was seriously wrong. Something was seriously wrong with Mary. "What happened to Mary?" Damian asked now invested in what Kevin had to tell him.

"I should have mentioned something earlier, but I didn't think it was this serious." Kevin looked around in a frantic paranoid way. He was scared, but the question was, of what? "Have you noticed Mary acting different?" Thompson asked. "She hasn't been coming to dance practice or hanging out with any of her usual friends." Kevin informed.

Damian raised a skeptical eyebrow, "So? She decided to change friends, and she grew out of ballet. Your point?" Though it was news to Damian that Mary wasn't going to dance practice like she said she was, she was probably just going through a phase.

"About two, maybe three weeks ago a new girl joined our class, and she's been glued to Mary's hip. Since This girl buddied up to her, Mary's been acting weird. Skipping dance, not talking to any of her old friends, breaking my nose." Damian gave him a surprised look. "I know, I know. She broke my nose like a week or two back. Anyway, the list goes on. Something is really wrong, with her. She's been letting Alicia hit her, and tell her what to do. She's like a puppet."

"Wait, What makes you think this new friend of Mary's is hitting her? She wouldn't let anyone hit her." Damian said.

"She did. Well, almost did. The girl Alicia Royal was going to slap her and Mary just closed her eyes to take the hit. Mary doesn't even like to play fight!" Thompson proclaimed. This was a lie. Damian knew that. Mary very much enjoyed fighting, but the whole secret identity thing meant keeping some talents locked away from public eyes, even if that eye was your best friend. "She's not right, this Alicia Royal. She watches Mary like Mary is a brand new toy she just has to break. I don't like it."

"Okay, but other than just talk to her what could I do?" Damian sighed. This honestly just sounded like school drama. "Unless you know something else?" Damian asked. He had to make sure this wasn't anything serious. He owed Dick that much.

"When they were leaving, I heard Alicia Royal whisper something into Mary's ear, and that's what really made me come here to talk to you. She said, that Mary belonged to her and to the court." There it was, and Damian froze. This wasn't good. Grayson wasn't coming back home till tonight, and the court? What Court? Damian prayed it wasn't the same court he was thinking about. _"Beware The Court of Owls, that watches all the time, ruling Gotham from a shadow perch, behind granite and lime."_ Kevin Thompson started.

_"They watch you at your hearth, they watch you in your bed, speak not a whispered word of them or they'll send The Talon for your head."_ Damian finished. He eyed Kevin thompson carefully. Yes, it was The Court of Owls. "You are too smart for your own good. You've put yourself in danger by figuring this information out." Damian Grabbed the arm of the younger boy. "We need to get you out of here before they come for you." Kevin's arm suddenly went limp. Damian turned to find the knocked out one the ground. Damian carefully examined the boy's body and found a small dart embedded in his neck. Damian sniffed it. It was a sleeping agent. Damian was on high alert. The court was back. He hated fighting them. They had bad mouthed The league of Shadows, not that Damian supported them or anything, but even still he had lived more than half of his life there, and they had taught him most of what he knows, and they had to be great teachers, or at least half way competent in order to train him. Damian's hand slapped the back of his neck. He had stopped the dart, but not in enough time. It had nicked him just barely, but enough. He could feel sleep coming to him, and his vision started to grow fuzzy, but before he blackout a familiar voice walked up.

"We can't have him ruining Lady Alicia's plans. Tie them up properly then throw them into the harbor. They won't be any trouble to us that way. I can't have these two warning Wayne of his upcoming death. The element of surprise is major in our mission." It was Mary that stood before him. Her skin had grown even paler and her eyes were now an eerie gold.

"Mary,"Damian choked out before passing out. "Don't-"

"Sorry, but Lady Alicia's and The Court's orders. I would have spared the boy if he hadn't been causing such a fuss, now he's caused you an early death. I hope you enjoy drowning, Damian Wayne." She said curtly "Take them now. I know how he works. When he wakes up he'll be out of those ropes faster than you can kill him. Actually change those ropes to chains." Mary ordered. She smirked, a cruel smirk. It was time for a new age in Gotham. The time for the Bats has ended, and now the Owls shall rise again. It was glorious. Today will be the day, The Court of Owls returns on top.

* * *

"Selina!" Dick had called out in a hush voiced. He heard the shifting of movement and coming from the shadows was Catwoman herself.

"Dick?" She asked unsure. When she got a good look at him she ran to him. "Thank god." She cried. "We need to go now!" NIghtwing raised an eyebrow at her.

"What's going on, Selina?" Dick asked generally worried. He looked Selina over. She had obviously been in some kind of a fight. One of the ears of her cowl had been torn off, and her goggles cracked. She was also bleeding heavily from her head. She definitely had an concussion, luckily that was the only serious of injury. Her only other injuries being the deep cuts covering her skin.

"Bruce asked me to look into what was going on behind the scenes. It turned out to be a lot worse than I thought. It's The Court of Owls!" She said. Selina froze and Dick knew why. "You know for such highly praised assassins they sure should move a little more quietly."

"You'll have to excuse them," said a surprisingly young voice. "They're still in training. We had to take them out early, but don't worry. We've trained them to deal specifically with the bat problem this city has. Take them down."

Nightwing turned to see a young girl about Mary's age ordering the talons around her, "Richard John Grayson, son of John and Mary Grayson. You were supposed to be our next Talon, but that's fine. We've found a suitable substitute, and I must say, I've grown rather fond of her." Nightwing stared at her with wide eyes.

"What the hell are you talking about?" He growled.

"Oh don't worry, you'll be joining your daughter soon." The girl comforted. "She's on a special little mission for us, but when she's done with Bruce Wayne she'll come back to take care of you." With a flip of her pale hair, the girl began to walk away. "Oh, bring Grayson with us when you're done." She ordered. "You can leave the cat here to die. I don't care. " and she was gone.

Before she was even out of sight, the Talon began their attack. Dick threw Selina his comm, she was in no condition to fight. "Call Batman!" He yelled as he dodged a knife thrown at him. "Then get out of here! we're outnumbered, and you're too injured to keep fighting." Selina opened her mouth to say something, but Dick cut her off. "Until, you can stop the bleeding from your head, Don't you dare start fighting unless you really have to. Bruce would actually care some if you were to die."

"Fine." She snapped, not at all pleased. "I'll just stay here, and not help- DICK MOVE!" She screamed but in vain. As the knife embedded itself into Nightwing's left knee. He cried out in pain and fell to the ground as Selina quickly called Bruce on the comm before being taking down by a Talon that came up behind her frantic state. Another knife embedded itself into Nightwing's other knee as he tried to move toward his fallen friend.

"Don't worry, Grayson." Said one of the Talons. "Lady Alicia wants you alive. We'll take good care of you." They promptly kicked the vigilante in the face knocking him out.

Bruce wouldn't get there in time, not this time.

* * *

"Hey, wake up." Kevin Thompson heard a voice not so gently bringing him out of sleep. "Asshole, Jesus fucking Christ, I swear to God. I will kill you right now if you don't fucking wake up right now, Thompson." The voice was none other than Damian Wayne. Kevin opened his eyes to see they were not in school like he last remembered but someplace he didn't know, and he was chained back to back with probably his least favorite person. From the window he could see it was now night. What ever put him to sleep must have been extremely Oh... Now he remembered. He felt a sharp pain in his neck before sleep took him over, before that he was talking to Damian about- Oh shit, he thought to himself. They were certainly in some trouble if they were taken by who he thinks they were taken by.

"Where the hell are we?" Kevin asked.

Damian rolled his eyes, not that Kevin could see. "Of course you wouldn't notice the smell of the harbor. We're in a boathouse on the docks. How simple can you get?"

"Really?" Kevin asked completely outraged. "I really don't need this crap from you, too." Kevin sighed. "Okay, so we have been kidnapped by the most dangerous people in Gotham since the beginning of time." Damian snorted. He was the most dangerous person in Gotham, definitely not this old loons. "What are we going to do?"

"We'll have to escape." Damian said simply.

Kevin gave him a surprised look, "Escape?" he echoed. "How the hell are we supposed to escape? I don't know if you noticed but they are dealing with two kids here. There is no way we can escape before they throw us into the harbor." Damian paused before nodding his head and agreeing.

"You're right." He said. Kevin did a double take.

"Did you just admit I was right." Kevin laughed. Damian glared at the younger boy, or at least tried to from his position.

"Shut up, Thompson. I want you to listen very carefully. I assume that in about 3 minutes they will come and toss both of our asses into the harbor, and if you don't want to drown I suggest you shut up and listen." Damian said seriously, "As of the moment, I can't reach the lock pick in my back pocket.-"

"You have a lock pick on you?" Kevin cut Damian off.

"Didn't I say to shut the fuck up." Kevin grew silent. "When they pick us up to throw us in the harbor I'll be able to reach it." Kevin locked alarmed.

"It'll be too late by then!" He almost shouted, and was shushed by Damian.

"Not if you just listen to me. I should be able to pick the lock on these chains before you run out of air. All I need you to do is stay alive. Can you do that?" DAmian asked if he could he would look the younger boy in the eye, but being back to back Damian just hoped the seriousness of his tone reached him.

"I've never been a strong swimmer," Kevin sighed. "But I'll hold my breathe as long as I can. You better get us out of here, Wayne."

Damian snorted, "Please, the only reason that I haven't gotten us out of here yet is because they would come after us if we escaped, faking our deaths will be easier."

Kevin gave him a confused look, "I thought you said you couldn't reach your lock pick?"

"That too." Damian heard hushed voices, "Be quiet." He ordered. "Here they come." Smartly, Kevin choose to pretend to still be passed out while Damian glared at the entrance of two Talons mask absent from their faces. One was a male, African-American, Tall, well built. By the muscle tone on his body and stature Damian guessed he was a MMA fighter. The woman was of Asian descent. Her hair was in a long ponytail. She had to be gymnast from well was a gymnast, by her short height and all around toned body, but not toned enough to be a fighter. "Let me guess." Damian started. "You're going to tell us your plan, then throw us into the Harbor. How cliché. You obviously have know idea who you're dealing with. "

"I'll have you know that we do, Damian Wayne. We heard a lot about you from our trainer. We're going to be taking precautions to make sure you don't make it out of the harbor alive. " The male Talon said. From behind him, he pulled out some duct tape and proceeded to tape shut Damian mouth and nose. "I can't have you holding you breathe under there. I won't make the same mistakes countless of other have made." He then dragged the two young boys out of the bouting house and onto the dock.

"Our trainer was right,"Said the female Talon. "Killing The Waynes are fun." and she kicked Damian and Kevin into the Harbor.

Damian had to give Kevin Thompson some credit, when the cold water hit them he did not in fact panic like Damian had been expecting him to. Before the Talon had kicked them into the water the boy had taken a rather deep breathe was now holding as long as he could. Damian estimated he had about 2 minutes at most before Kevin passed out, one from lack of oxygen, and two from the water pressure raising as they sunk deeper and deeper into the water. Damian also had to recognize the tap on his mouth all so gave hims less time then he would normally have. On a good day Damian could hold his breathe for about ten, and that was with a good deep breathe before becoming submerged into the water. Today, he had about 5 minutes, three minutes longer than Kevin. Damian had work to do. Quickly, with his chained hands he took out his lock pick, and carefully began to unlock the lock. One stroke of luck, the lock had been a standard master lock, easy to break out of. He then moved the chains from around both himself and Kevin. Kevin had passed out. Damian had cursed to himself inside of his head, He was out of time. He then grabbed a hold of the boy and swam him to the surface of the water breaking through. Kevin needed CPR, and Damian was stuck in the middle of the Gotham Harbor with Duct tape still on his mouth and nose. He could feel his chest starting to hurt. He had about a minute to make it away from the docks the two talons were and get the duct tape from around his face before he suffocated to death. As if the gods had favored him in that moment, a small sand bar appeared. Damian thanked god as he started to swim toward the sand bar, struggling to keep Kevin's head above the water. When they reached the sand bar Damian did not hesitate to remove the tape not even wincing in the slightest as he felt the skin being ripped from his face, and immediately started to perform CPR on the younger boy. After a few seconds Kevin Thompson began coughing up the water he had swallowed.

"Totally thought I was a goner." Kevin said in between coughs. "Thanks for saving my life."

Damian stuck his nose high in the air, "Tt, please. I only saved you because Mary would never shut about the fact that I let you die. So, consider this a one time favor, Thompson."

"Whatever reason you did it for, thank you anyway. So, what do we do now?" Kevin questioned.

"You're going home, where it's safe. Me, I have some unfinished business with The Court of Owls."

* * *

When Bruce had gotten to the scene all he found was a severely injured Selina, and no sign whatsoever of Nightwing. Selina was not going to be waking up anytime soon in her condition leaving Batman still troubled as to who was the enemy this time, and hoped he was not too late figuring out.

Bruce sent Selina to leslie's clinic after being assured her injuries were not life threatening. She had a broken jaw, a black eye, and a stab wound to the abdomen, but Selina wasn't going to die. Bruce honestly couldn't even think about that anymore, because Dick Grayson was missing. He had tried contact him in, but nothing came up. Even the tracking device(which Dick didn't know existed) seemed to be out of commision. Bruce searched for hours, a number of his enemies could have been responsible for his missing state. It was no secret that the dark knight favored the boy. Kidnapping attempts happened from the moment Bruce had taken Dick in, and even though he was a fully grown man they still happened. Though, now it didn't seem as odd when Dick saved himself. Bruce had to think, the person who had taken him must have been an enemy of Batman, or known that Bruce Wayne was Batman. That had narrowed down the search some, but even after hours and the night grow longer Bruce had no choice but to call in the others. They would want to know.

The first to respond to the call was the young Starling, she into the Batcave on her motor bike, Starling uniform on.

"What happened?" She asked worriedly as she ran to Bruce. "What do you mean my dad is missing?"

Bruce looked the girl once over. Mary held her breath. Finally, he answered her question. "As soon as your dad came back I sent him to go find Selina, she's been MIA for the past several days."

"And..." Mary urged.

"Dick found her." Bruce answered putting his cowl back on. "But someone found them. By the time I got there Selina was injured, and Dick was gone." Mary gasped.

"But-but-but where is he now? Have you found him, Bruce? Please tell me you've found him." She begged.

Bruce raised an eyebrow at the girl, "I'll tell you as soon as you tell me what you've done with him." Mary froze. Then laughed. A hard long laugh.

"I knew there was no getting past you." She said as she wiped a tear from her eye. "When did you figure me out?" She asked with a coy little smirk.

"You overplayed your part. By now Mary would have demanded the information, and gone looking for Dick herself, not begging me to find him. She's very independent, but also she follows orders most of the time meaning right now she wouldn't be in uniform. She still grounded from her fight with Kevin Thompson. She wouldn't have put the mask back on till her father told her she could." Batman said returning his on confident smirk. "So, who are you really?"

"Oh, Trust me. I am Mary Grayson, but I have been reborn. I will be helper in the founding of a new Gotham, and you will be no more." She answered.

"New Gotham. What do you mean?" his gruff Batman voice had been turned on.

Mary snorted, "I mean-" but before she could finish out of nowhere a batarang flew towards Mary hitting her straight in the temple knocking the girl unconscious. Batman turned and glared at the person responsible.

"What are you doing? She was talking I could have gotten all the information out of her." He said to his son Damian Wayne. Tensions were still high between the two.

Damian snorted, "You underestimate her if you think that would have worked, besides I have enough information for you."

"Really? Because if you do go ahead and tell me where Dick is." Damian paled. "You didn't know he was taken because you didn't answer my call earlier. You don't listen, Damian. That's your problem. I can't have a partner who won't listen, or is having erratic behavior. I put up with with when you were younger but you are 12 now, not the violent 8 year old I brought to the cave 4 years ago." Damian glared back at his father.

"Why do you have to bring up everything I've done wrong when I make a small mistake! You're just waiting for me to go back to the League of Shadows, aren't you?!" Bruce stilled, and clenched his jaw. Damian sighed. Now he's done it. "I don't want to argue with you right now. We have bigger problems then whatever the hell is wrong between the two of us. Right now, we need tie Mary up, preferably in something or put her somewhere that could hold you for an indefinite amount of time. She knows all of our interrogation tricks, there was no way you could have intimidated her into talking. She knows you to well to be scared of you now." Bruce nodded slightly pleased that his son had enough sense to stop the ensuing argument. If it were him when he was younger they would be fighting till Bruce ordered him upstairs.

"Fine." Bruce conceded. "Put her in the quarantine medical Bay. She couldn't get out of there unless she were at the Batcomputer." Damian nodded scooped the young girl in his arms and deposited her into the area of Bruce's specifications. When she was properly locked down into the clear room Bruce turned to his son . "Who is behind all of this, and what does it have to do with Dick and Mary?" He asked Damian.

"It doesn't make sense until you know who's behind it all. It's The Court of Owls, I have reason to believe they planted someone into Mary's class, and are controlling her somehow. I think with a Hypnos Implant, but stronger. Everyone is noticing her strange behavior, fighting with her best friend, not going to dance practice, sneaking out of the manor(I know you've noticed. you just haven't said anything to her yet.) and etcetera."

"You think she's being controlled by The Court? That she's not doing this by her own free will." Damian shook his head.

"I have no doubt, but I believe I know how to stop it." Damian said. "I'm sure she needs to be in the person controlling her presence in order to continue being controlled, but she's away from that person now. If we are able to break her loyalty to that person while she's here, maybe the control over her will fail, and the real Mary will come back to us. I could be wrong, we're still not sure how to combat a Hypnos Implant, and I don't know what The Court of Owls is planning, but I know whatever it is they what to do with the Graysons can't be good."

"You're right, but we still don't know their complete plan. Though, from what Mary was saying earlier it seems to be similar to plan when we first faced them. Take back Gotham from us, and rule it from their shadowy perch. She says there is going to be new age." Bruce explained. Bruce would have continued if not for the small laughter coming from the locked up Mary grayson.

"You think The Court of Owls is behind all of this? Please, those old fools don't know that Gotham needs to be cleansed, they've been feeding off of the corruption for decades, on decades. It's time for someone to completely take Gotham under their wing and start a new regime. Long live The Red Queen."

* * *

Alicia Royal stood over the bodies of her fallen family.

"Alicia, Why?" Her father choked out before dying from the poison put in his dinner. With cold eyes Alicia started down at the man.

"Simple." she answered, "Because with all of this power you could do so much more than control Gotham from the underworld. It's time to step out into the light, and rule this city with an iron fist. With me ruling, it would be a Utopia, but you all were too foolish to see that. Don't worry, I hear there is a special place in hell for people like you. People who do nothing, and waste their time and resources." Alicia answered. "The time of the Court of Owls has ended, and the Red Queen's Regime shall rise from its ashes. What do you think about all of this, Richard Grayson?"

In the chair tied up at the Dinner table was Nightwing, looking as if he had seen a war. Domino mask was halfway ripped off his face, and a dark bruise was forming on his left cheekbone. He looked as if he had seen better days.

"Why did you kill them?" Was the first thing out of his mouth. "They were your family. You didn't have to kill them. You killed all of them from your mother to your baby brother, why?" He asked. He tried to look anywhere but the bodies on the floor. Next to him was the body of the young girl's two year old brother, and on the other side of Nightwing was the body of her elder sister.

"You should be happy they're gone. They meant to kill you today, Richard Grayson. I just saved your life." Alicia huffed.

"I'd rather be dead, if that meant bring back that little boy." Alicia gasped slightly offended at his words.

"Why? So he can grow up and try to kill you? I did this for you, Richard. You were nowhere in my original plans for my take over, but I had to fit you in. I need you alive...For now anyway. They wanted to kill you for betraying The Court. I don't know what about that you don't understand, they planned to replace you. After all, that was the original plan let a new talon take your place, and it was always intended that it would be a Grayson." Nightwing looked up at the girl with wide eyes.

" Then Mary..." he whispered.

"Don't worry, she won't be a Talon. Her natural talent and leadership skills should be put to better use than a simple Talon, but I do recognize that she would have made a great one."

"Why us?!' Nightwing cried out. "I left the circus, and Mary was never there. Why would you come back for us now?"

"Didn't I just say they were trying to kill you." Alicia said annoyance dripping in her tone. "And don't think the only recruiting place was Haly's circus. The Court would have come back for you eventually, but by the time they would have been able to get close enough to take to you, there was no way for you to be converted, you were much too old, and had Bruce Wayne's ideology drilled into your head, but Mary she is still young, easy for them to take and convert. She's still a clean slate... Well, clean enough for them to control her. The Court of Owls will never leave you alone, Richard Grayson. Everywhere you go you'll have to look over your shoulder unless you join me and my new Regime. Unlike The Court, unlike Batman I recognize how truly great you are, and with your help we can transform Gotham into a city that you can be proud of. What you say? Join me and you can finally live in peace." Alicia said.

"I think I'll take my chances." Nightwing said as he glared at the girl. "You are one crazy nine year old." he sneered.

"I like to think of myself as ambitious. It's fine you don't have to join me, but know when you stand against me you stand against your daughter, as well. "

* * *

"So, you're telling me that the Mary that is being held in the Batcave is actually being mind controlled by someone called the Red Queen? That's positively the most least creative name ever. What's the story behind this whole thing anyway?" Jason said looking at the girl

"Long story, we'll tell you later. Right now you're the one who needs to pull Mary out of this...Trance?" Damian said unsure of what word to exactly use for this situation. "Batman, and I are going to see if we can find the girl who did this. Meanwhile, you need to break Mary's faith in that girl, Alicia Royal. If not..."

"I get it. I get it. I know, but do you know how hardheaded this girl is?" Jason said as he watched Batman and Robin get into the batmobile.

"Not our problem, Hood." Batman answered starting up the batmobile. "You do your job, and we'll do ours. I don't care what it takes, you need to get Mary back to her normal self." Jason sighed.

"Whatever you say, big man. I'll do what I can." And the Dynamic duo drove off.

"I'll have you know that I am completely loyal to the Red Queen's Regime. Nothing you can do to me can ever stop me from getting back to Lady Alicia." Mary said from the other side of the thick clear plastic.

"First of all you need to know is that you are being manipulated by your Lady Alicia." Jason sat in the chair in front of but on the other side of the clear barrier. "What is affecting your mind is called Hypnos Implant. I'm sure this Alicia has been using it on you since you met her." Mary scoffed at her uncle.

"Please, I've read the file on the Hypnos Implant, and the affects of it would be too strong for a Hypnos Implant."

"Prolonged Exposure." Jason said with a wave of his hand. "I also think that they engineered it to be stronger than the normal implant." Mary rolled her eyes.

"I was going to give you a place in the Red Queen's Regime. I thought you out of everyone was worthy enough, I can see now that I was wrong." Mary said sitting down on the medical bed.

Jason laughed, "That was one half assed effort to try to get me to join your ranks. I could have sworn I trained you better than that." Jason said with a cocky grin.

"You did." Mary returned the grin with a smirk. "I just know not to try your own tricks on you. I'm not stupid, you know?"

"Oh, I know." Jason said. "Just like I know unless you get real proof of you being under the influence of a Hypnos implant, that there is no changing your mind."

"I'm glad we've come to an understanding-"

"But that doesn't mean I'm giving up. Not yet anyway." Jason said cutting her off.

"Royal Manor." Robin said as he eyed the very large mansion from the cliff side. "Who knew the Court of Owls head family lived 15 minutes from the Batcave? Tt, That definitely was not the smartest place to live."

"They've actually been living here for decades, almost as long as the Waynes." Batman answered as the crept closer to the mansion. "It was one of the few houses that wasn't destroyed during the earthquake a few years back. You know the plan from here." Batman said as the reached the manor. "Go, and try to follow orders." You could see Robin roll his eyes from underneath the domino mask as he climbed up to the roof. Batman shook his head. Of all the times that boy choose to be difficult. Then again, he had always been dreading the days of when Damian would hit puberty. Batman had thought Dick and jason had joked about how bad he would be, but know he was realizing that it was so much worse. Batman shook those thoughts out of his head and began to focus on the mission at hand.

There was no doubt in his mind that Alicia Royal and her Red Queen's Regime would be waiting for him. Out all of the things he had seen in his time as Batman, a nine year old homicidal, power-hungry psychopath is a first. That was why when he saw the bodies of the Royal family lying on the dining room floor Batman wasn't that surprised. He didn't even need to check pulse. It was obvious that the family was dead. They had been poisoned from the looks of it. The whole family was there from Adrian Royal, the Patriarch of the Royal family to little Roy Royal. The young toddler, who probably didn't have any idea what was going on in this family. The only person of the Royal family missing was the one who committed this atrocity, Alicia Royal. Batman knew from the sounds of things Alicia Royal was deadly, but she killed her entire family just to take the Talons from them, and cripple The Court Owls. Well, no one could say the girl wasn't ambitious. In order to make this kind of plan she must have been planning for months, years even. At only nine Alicia Royal, The Red Queen, had become more dangerous than a lot of his enemies. She was genius, and Bruce must take every precaution with her. She was unpredictable, and he was playing her game.

"Greetings. Batman." A young sweet voice called out when Batman turned the corner, it was Alicia Royal surrounded by what looked to be former Talons all dressed in her motif of red and white. "i'm glad you could finally make it. I have been dying to meet you. I was just telling Richard that."

Batman growled, "Where is he?" but instead of being intimidated by the man the girl laughed,

"In due time, I set all of this up just so I could meet you the least you could do is sit and have a cup of tea with me." She gestured to the seat next to her and the small table with a tea set on it.

"I Prefer standing if you will." Batman answered back.

"Pity, it's rose tea. My favorite." She said taking a sip.

"What's your ploy, Royal. Why kill your entire family, and take the Talons that were still in training. What was the point of all of this?" He asked her.

"All of it to meet you, Batman. I've heard so much about you since I was a child, and I wondered how could the Court hate such a smart and cunning man. If anything they should have asked to join their ranks, but the old hatred of the Waynes made sure that they would never do that. The Court of Owls was filled with fools who believe the old times when all of Gotham used to fear them will come back. Of the stronger believers were my Father and Mother. They thought if they took out everyone in the Bat-clan, then Gotham would fear them the most again, but they are wrong. I realized long ago, that we can't really kill the Batman. We can kill you, Bruce Wayne, and all of your little children following at your heels, but we can't kill The Batman. Do you know why?" Alicia asked rhetorically. "Because you are no longer an urban legend. You a symbol of hope, of Rebellion, of justice, and you can't kill a symbol. If we killed you and everyone involved in what you do, someone else would only step up wearing the same cowl fighting crime in the name of justice, and the cycle will repeat itself. I congratulate you. You have immortalized the image of The Batman. It will never go away because you have awaken the people of Gotham to the normal wrong state of things, you have washed their eyes of the haze that The Court created so long ago, and because you did that someone is going to always be trying to be just like you. Someone is going start where ever it is you leave off."

"You asked what I want from all of this." Alicia continued. "Well, it's simple. I want to rule. I want Power, and I am looking in far more bigger places than Gotham. I see far more bigger places the this country. In my dreams I see a perfect world under my Regime, and really only a few things stand in my way; You, your little friends on that spaceship high in the sky, and The Court. The Court doesn't see the bigger picture like I see it. I knew they would have to be dealt with sooner or later. They were the easiest to take out. No one sees betrayal when it's that close to you." Batman's jaw clenched. "Oh don't pout. I didn't kill the whole Court of Owls. Only my family, and a few others. I've crippled their entire organization. You should be thanking me. They'll be running around like headless chickens for next four years at least. I've also drained most of their finances. My point being The Court of Owls won't be coming back anytime soon. And now you are wondering what has become of poor Richard, and what my intentions for Mary are, correct?" She asked. "Well, The first the court was going to do tonight, in order to bring in a new age into Gotham, was kill him for being a traitor. They were going to make a big spectacle of it and everything, unmask him in front of everyone in the Square, and then execute him. Mary on the other had was chosen by the Court to take her father's place. Being so young, they could still easily manipulate her into becoming their loyal Talon."

"The Hypnos Implant you have." Batman said entering Alicia's monologue for the first time.

"Wasn't that hard to obtain." She finished for him. "As you can tell it is a lot stronger than the normal implant and all they needed was someone Mary's age to enter her school, and convince her to join us, with a little hypnos to confuse her judgement. I had been making these plans for years, I just need the perfect moment to play it all out, and the perfect right hand at my side. That's when the Court brought Mary and Richard Grayson back to my attention. I will be honest, I wanted Richard at first, but he would be harder to convince so I went with Mary. The hypnos implant making it all too easy. She didn't even realize what she was doing till it was too late. She's perfect to lead my Regime, and with her in time This world will be mine."

"So you admit to using the hypnos implant on Mary since the beginning." Batman said in order to clarify her story. Alicia impolitely rolled her eyes.

"Yes, I have. I just said that." Alicia groaned. Batman smirked.

"Good." He touched the ear piece of his cowl. "Hood, did you get all of that." he said into the comm inside his cowl.

"Loud and clear, Batman." Hood said in his ear. Batman had turned the volume up loud enough so Alicia Royal could hear. "Alicia Royal may want to run and hide because I don't think I've ever seen Mary this angry. Uh oh, She getting on her bike to head over there. That's probably not the best idea, I'm going to go stop her. In good news Mary is no longer under the control of the Red Queen's Regime. Thanks, Oracle, for the live cowl camera feed."

"No problem." She answered before going silent.

"It's over, Miss Royal." Batman said in a gruff tone.

"but-but-but- NO! YOU CAN'T!" Alicia screamed and for the first time that night sounding like her age. "You tricked me! Mary Grayson was mine! You can't have her back!"

"But we do." Batman said no mercy in his voice. "The thing about Hypnos implants are once a person is aware that they are being controlled by one the compulsion does not work anymore, and every thing you've made Mary think is now obsolete. Your first mistake was dealing with me. I know a thing or two about dealing with Psychopaths and one thing I have learned is that they love to brag about how amazing their plans, just like you did. I knew you would talk enough to free Mary from your control."

"I still have Richard Grayson, and if you ever want to see him again you'll let us go." she said trying to barter her freedom.

"I don't think so." Robin said. walking around the corner with Nightwing. "Before you even think about fighting us you should know. We did bring back up who are on standby outside of this manor. Also the police will be here in about." Robin checked his nonexistent watch "Five minutes. You could either give up now, or just prolong the inevitable for another 15 minutes. Go ahead, you know how much I love bringing Court scum to Arkham." He said punching his fist into his other hand. " Tt, and I hear you're due for a nice face rearranging. Make my day, Royal." Alicia Royal looked completely vexed. If looks could kill, Robin would be dead 100 times over by now, but Alicia Royal was smart. She knew her chances of winning were not in her favor.

"Fine, but I'll be out of Arkham before you can even blink, Batman, and I'll come back for the Graysons. They are too perfect for my Regime just to let them go." She motioned for the former Talons to surrender as she held out her hands to be handcuffed. "What is it that you always say about Arkham, Batman, it has a revolving door?" and she laughed, the kind of laugh that would send shivers up your spine.

The cops showed up not three minutes after Alicia Royal surrendered. When Gordon saw that a little nine year old girl was responsible for the murder of about 3 families including her own he only sighed, and said that he was far too old to be doing this sort of thing anymore, and that he needed to retire. Batman Robin, and Nightwing were all really surprised that for once a villain didn't decide to go to Arkham the hard way, but then again Alicia Royal wasn't their normal villain. It wasn't until ALicia Royal was in the squad car driving away, that Batman got a call confirming his suspicions.

"Batman!" Starling's voice rang through his head piece. "You have to stop her she planned all of this! She knew this was going to happen! She's going to-" but before Starling could finish the sound of an explosion boomed loud throughout the manor. All three vigilantes ran out to find the prisoner van and the squad car holding Alicia Royal and her former Talons, up in flames, and everyone that was arrested that night missing.

And for the first time in a long time, the Dark knight lost a chess match to the very clever Red Queen.

* * *

Back in the Batcave Mary was apologizing more than both Bruce and Damian could handle. She never stopped, making sure they knew how upset and sorry she was all of this happened.

"I understand if you want you want me to stop being Starling. I screwed up really bad. That was such a rookie mistake. I'm so sorry." She said. The girl wasn't crying, but from her tone it sounded like she was about to start.

"Stop." Bruce commanded. "No one said anything about you hanging up your Starling uniform."

"But I could have killed tonight!" She exclaimed.

"But you didn't. Alicia Royal came after you while you were supposed to be safe at school. You had no reason to think that she would be with the Court of Owls, or that she had her own agenda. She had you and a lot of other people fooled. I can't blame you for something you couldn't have prepared for. Now Dick falling for Poison Ivy's charm in the field again, I can blame him for. He knows her powers, and what she can do. You were blind-sided, and if I were in your position I probably wouldn't have fared much better."

Mary stared at him with wide eyes. "You mean it?" She asked.

"I do." He said with a nod. Out of nowhere Mary ran up and hugged the caped crusader knocking the wind out of him.

"Thank you, Grandpa." She said, and began to cry into his chest. Bruce after a moment returned the hug and smiled fondly at the young girl.

"Do you see that Alfred, he's hugging her." Dick whispered to the butler tending to his injuries.

"That I do Master Richard." Alfred answered.

"You know, he only started this hugging thing until after he got Jason. I got slaps instead of hugs, this is such bull crap."

"I am quite aware."

"Still, "Dick started, "It's nice to see how much Bruce has grown over the years. He's starting to let that nice man underneath the kevlar show."

* * *

Mary took a deep breath as she stood outside of her dance studio, a place she hadn't stepped foot in about 2 weeks. She blew off practices not to mention competitions, and she wasn't there all because of Alicia Royal's control over her. Now, Mary had to face the music. It was time for the punishment she deserved

"Tt, Are you going to go in or what?" Damian asked. Mary doesn't know why she brought him for the moral support, probably because everyone else was busy.

"I just need a minute, okay? This is a little nerve racking. I did ignore everything in my life for the past two weeks." She said biting her nails a bad habit she picked up from Stephanie.

"I don't understand you. You can kick Two-Face in his two face, but you can't face the people you love after you've made a mistake? That makes no sense. No matter what you do they'll accept you back with open arms." Damian said with a sigh.

"How do you know?"

"Because I've done far worse than you could ever do, and for some reason Father seems to let me stay." Mary blinked at the older boy. That almost sounded like guilt. In fact Mary was sure it was guilt. "Therefore these people should have the heart to accept you back, even after you did screw them over for competitions."

Mary sighed. "Alright, wait here. This is something I have to do alone." She told Damian. Mary walked up and pulled open the door. The wide eyes of the secretary, and then the glare as she walked past were not lost to her. In fact everyone who was in dance troop seemed to glare at her as she walked by. Mary could hear some mutters of "how dare she" and some "oh god why." but really they mostly stared at her as if she had come back from the dead. Mary kept her head high though. She was a performer and now she had to put on a performance.

"So the prodigal daughter makes her way back home," A voice called out. Kevin. Mary instantly recognized that voice. The last time she had heard it was when she had both him and Damian knocked out, tied up, and thrown into the Gotham Harbor. He didn't look all too pleased with her. In fact he had on his poker face making it hard for Mary to read the boy. He stared at her with a nonchalance as if he didn't care what Mary decided to do next, and that look hurt more than any of the glares thrown at her earlier.

"Kevin, I am so-"

"Save it." Kevin held up his hand in a stopping motion. "It's good to have you back, Riri." And he smiled at her. A genuine smile that let Mary know she was forgiven for everything she had done, and then he pulled her into a giant bone crushing hug. "Oh by the way, Michelle wants to see you now." Mary stilled in Kevin's arms.

"Oh God, she's going to kill me, isn't she?" Mary asked truly frightened.

"No more so than anybody else. Go on, you'll be surprised by what she has to say." He gestured to the room and Mary walked up to it, but before knocking she turned back to Kevin.

"Please go and tell Damian to head back to the Manor, I'll call someone when I need to be picked up. Also tell him I said thank you." She said before knocking and opening the door to the room, and meeting her dancing fate.

Kevin smiled at her. Mary was going to be staying with the Conservatory for a very long time, Michelle wasn't going to let such a talented girl slip out of her fingers, and neither was Kevin.

* * *

_Final word count: 14,026(DA END IS NEIGH)_

_THIS CHAPTER RIGHT HERE! NEVER AGAIN WILL IT BE THIS LONG(unless we have another big arc like this) If this had hit 15000 I was going to cut it in half, because it's way too long. In other news... This chapter took so long because last two weeks have been Band Camp! Yup! and if you've ever been in the marching band then you know. I have no life but Marching band from now until about november after competition season. Meaning Updates are going to be coming even slower because school starts back up in August, as well. It's my Senior year of High school, and I've been dreading it like the plague. _

_Anyway, story stuffy. I will confirm that we will see Alicia Royal, and the Red Queen's Regime again. This is Mary's first villain that is her villain. not Nightwing's and not Batman's. She is also not the only villain Mary is going to have. I'm still debating whether or not she's going to be Mary's main nemesis. It's still between her and another character. Nightwing will be in the chapter more next chapter I swear along with the introduction of a new face, a hero around Mary's age who works with his mother... Guess who they are.  
_

_Also thanks to Victory Goddess and Shygirl for their reviews! As always they make me smile, and get me through a chapter! _

_Next chapter, Mischief Managed. (That's your only hint) _

_Love, _

_ ~Miyu K. July 28,2014_


	9. Nightwing and Starling 3

**_Nightwing &amp; Starling 3_**

**_The Missing part 1_**

"Do you two really have to go?" Starling asked. She watched as Batman and Robin packed the Batmobile. It was unspoken, but the dynamic duo would be gone for a while. "Gotham's always terrible when you're gone, Bruce, and you're taking Daman with you this time. Both Batman and Robin gone from Gotham, already sounds like a nightmare."

"You'll be fine." Bruce answered not stopping from packing the Batmobile full of all of the potential supplies that he might need. "Your father is here, as well as Hood, Red Robin, and Huntress. Anything computer wise you should be able to do for yourself if not Oracle is always willing to help."

"But she's on the case two with the Birds of Prey. It's the first time that so many of us are gone. Sorry, if I'm a little wary of the idea." Starling paused as she looked at the two intently. "You two are going to careful, right?" The two stopped at the same time, looked at each other then at Mary.

"Define careful." They both said at the same time. Mary sighed.

"I should have known."

Damian smirked at the girl as he loaded what looked to be a nonlethal weapon into the back of the Batmobile. "Chill, Mini Grayson, we'll be back ." Mary narrowed her eyes at the older boy.

"Really? Because last I checked this was personal, and personal cases make us sloppy." Batman didn't even blink at her accusation while Robin glared at the girl.

"What are you trying to say?" Robin said angrily. He almost walked up on the young girl when his father's voice stopped him in his tracks.

"She's right. Being personal with a case can make you sloppy. You're worried about us?" The dark Knight observed.

"Can you blame me? People are missing, Grandpa, and you want to go into the heart of all of this. What if you go missing like Stephanie?"

"We'll find Stephanie. I promise." He didn't answer her question, but still his words comforted her, "In order to find her and all of the missing people we need you and the rest, here in Gotham. I know you want to help find her, but I need you here, understand?" It seemed Bruce knew what exactly to say to get the young Starling to follow orders. To make her understand why exactly she was doing something, and that was the reason she always listened to The Bat. Her father was another story. Yes, she listened to him, but she was more likely to bend his orders to her will than she were with Bruce.

"What about Talia?" It happened for a fraction of the second but Mary could see it, a crack in the Dark Knight's armor. For a split second Bruce froze, and Mary could see something in him. She could see hurt in his eyes that were, for a split second with the cowl free of his face. Mary could the hurt in his eyes. Talia had really hurt him. He hid it well. The way even a mention of Talia's name burned him so. Mary had mentioned it her father once, to see if he noticed the slight imperfection in the so well built wall, Dick had only told her not to say anything, and that though he doesn't act it sometimes. Bruce was human, too.

"As long as she's one of the missing then she is an innocent that we have to save." Bruce finally answered. Even Damian snorted at the comment.

"Father, my mother is anything but innocent, though you are correct, she is a victim in all of this. So, we'll have to save her." As hard as Damian tried to put up a front in front of them, both Mary and Bruce could see through it. He was worried about Talia, understandably so. She was his mother even with all of the things she has done to him.

"Before we leave, Mary is there anything you might have missed telling us." Bruce asked. Mary shook her head.

"Not at all. I told you the full story. Stephanie and I were on patrol together when we both heard a woman scream. We went to check it out but when I got there there was no woman, and Steph was no longer with me. I looked for her all night, and I eventually found her belt in a trash can behind the Iceberg. That's all I know. I didn't notice anything else wrong with the night. Nothing out of the ordinary. In fact, the night was almost too quiet, so Steph and I were a little antsy because that's never a good thing."

"You didn't check to make sure she was following to the place you two heard the scream?" Bruce asked though not in a condemning way.

"Do you check to see if Robin is behind you on the way to the top of the police station when the signal's in the sky?" Mary asked. Bruce nodded getting her point.

"Where do you plan to start?" Mary asked.

Damian snorted again for the second time in one conversation. "The League of Shadows, of course. My grandfather knows what's going on. I'm sure of it." Mary didn't say anything, but what Damian said seemed plausible Talia was one of the people missing, Ra's must know at least a fraction of what was really going on, if this wasn't already his plan. Mary shook the thought out of her head. This really wasn't his M.O.

"If anything changes you'll contact us, right?" Starling asked. The Dynamic Duo didn't say anything, "Or at least you'll try." At this both nodded in agreement.

"I want you to keep a careful eye on this case, Starling." Batman ordered. "If anyone new goes missing make sure to contact us. I want to be informed of every movement. Also, if you can track down Zatanna Zatara." Mary raised an eyebrow at this. "Last I checked she was still Las Vegas, but the more people that go missing I'm worried she'll take off before I need her. I need you to keep her under our watchful eye. " Mary nodded understandingly. "Good. Be prepared for anything." and with that the father and son got into the Batmobile, and left the cave driving at high speed through the waterfall exit.

Mary took a deep breath and headed to the computer to review the case one more time. There had to be something that she missed. The file popped up on the screen and Mary looked at all the pictures that showed up. The first person to go missing was the magician/con artist, John Constantine. This was actually very normal, the man had a tendency to disappear without so much as a word to friends or family, but this time it was different. When looking for him, even Zatanna Zatara couldn't even find him with Magic. That's when everyone grew worried, and the Justice league got involved. The Justice League takes missing members very serious, and the founding members took it upon themselves to look into the case personally. Two weeks later they had gotten no where. It was as if John Constantine had vanished from the face of the Earth. There was no evidence of what could, or could not have happened to the con-man. This was when Batman got involved. He immediately noticed that there was no evidence at all. There was always evidence, and when there wasn't, that in itself was evidence. The detectives mind immediately went to other worlds, but that theory was easily crossed out because Watchtower sensors would have picked something up. Batman then thought the missing case of John Constantine had something to do with magic. The next missing persons case confirmed this. The next person that went missing was former Teen Titan, Raven.

Mary remembered the way her father's face paled at the news. An old friend of his, Garfield Logan, called him and told him the news. Dick was devastated to say the least, but Bruce assured him that Dick that he would find his fellow former Titan. Dick had high hopes till more and more people started going missing. After Raven it was Tempest, then Gypsy, Traci 13, Madame Xanadu, Doctor Fate, and many many more. Someone was taking any and all magic users. Magic users good and bad were going missing. The magic users that were left went into hiding. Zatanna who was heading the case, promised Batman that she wouldn't take off, as well. Batman was right in his slight mistrust of her. Zatanna had not shown up for motor duty on the watch tower as of 3 hours ago. She must have known Batman would be leaving, and planned accordingly.

Mary stared at the picture of Batgirl. Stephanie was the first of many people who were not magic users to be taken from their families and homes. Normal people, those whose lives had nothing with heroes or villains went missing all around the world. Among the Justice league, Captain Marvel, Fire, Animal Man, and Wonder Woman were among the many non magic using Justice league member to go missing. Batman knew then that this was the start of an epidemic, the news of Talia al ghul becoming one of the missing gave Batman a place to start. After days of getting no where and over a thousand people still missing Batman now had a starting place. Taking Robin with him, he's knowledge of the league's too valuable to not bring him, Batman went to find news about the whereabouts of Talia, and hopefully about everyone else. Leaving a majority of the Batfamily in Gotham. Cassandra Cain-Wayne, the only other missing as she herself was using her connections to find information on her best friend, Stephanie Brown.

Mary wouldn't lie, she did in act blame herself. If only she had seen or heard something then at least Bruce would be able to find her, but again Mary fell short and others paid or her mistakes. She had begged Bruce to take her with him, but of course he had rejected that idea. It had almost hurt her feelings until Robin had pointed out that she was needed here, to watch over Gotham. Gotham always held priority to her feelings, it always held priority over any of their feelings. Unless someone was dying, to Batman Gotham came first.

Mary took a deep breathe as she tried to talk herself out of going to find Stephanie alone like Cassandra did. Bruce had given her a job, and Mary had to complete it. With just the few pushing of buttons Zatanna Zatara's profile. She was definitely long gone from her Las Vegas home. She might be the key to finding out whatever is going on if Ra's doesn't pull through. Reading through the profile Mary found that the magician was originally from Gotham, too easy. Most likely she would have a very cleverly hidden place to hide in Gotham. She would probably only be there for a few hours until she left again, meaning the clock was ticking to find Zatanna Zatara. So where would a magic using super hero run off to in Gotham City. The answer, anywhere, but Mary knew how she could narrow down her search.

Mary pulled out her phone, and quickly dialed her dad's number, "Hey dad. Yeah, Bruce and Damian just left. Yup, he asked if I could look into some things" Dick asked if she needed his help "...No, you need to stay at work. If you don't Gordon is sure to fire you this time. I can handle it on my own, besides you won't be welcome where i'm going." Her father was now complaining about where she was going he wouldn't be welcomed. Mary rolled her eyes. "No...that shouldn't have you worried at all. I can take care of myself. Don't worry, just meet me in the park at midnight. I'll be there with whatever info I get. Okay? Yup, see you tonight." It was only about nine o'clock. Looks like Starling was getting an earlier start tonight.

* * *

In the east end of Gotham there were multiple factories that had been shut down. Sometimes these places were used as hideouts for villains, but most of the time they were used as a cover for something precious. Starling swung into the factor, and quickly made her way to the managers office on the first floor. Underneath the old dust covered desk and under the moth eaten rug one would find a door, and behind that door a set of staircases that went deep down into the underground, and there a glorious city laid. A city of only children. The City of Runaways.

The City of Runaways was almost as old as the city of Gotham itself, or at least that was what Starling had been told. It was run by, made by, and for kids, kids who had run away from home because either they were orphans or they were in abusive homes. It didn't matter the reason, if you were a kid and you were in trouble you went to the City of Runaways. Getting here was no issue, getting in was an another thing.

A large teenage boy about 17, maybe 18 stood at the entrance to the City. He guarded the City from unwanted adults. If an adult found there way down there, they would be dealt with and be sent back to the surface with ease. The teenager had a large gun strapped to his back, from where Mary stood it wasn't loaded. They usually only used them as intimidation tactics. The large boy looked at Mary, a glint of recognition was in his eyes as he asked her a question.

"Why is a Raven like a writing test?" He spoke quietly to her.

"You know, I haven't gotten a clue." Starling answered, "Do you think I've gone mad?" She asked in a worried tone. The Boy's stoic face turned into a grin, as he slapped her on the back like an older brother would.

"It's good to have you back in The City, Star. Where've you been?" He asked.

"Here, and there. You know the drill." She said returning the smile, "How's school going, Jackson?"

"Fine, just got a scholarship to the University of Georgia. Finally getting out of Gotham." He answered with a even wider proud grin.

"That's amazing, don't forget to come and visit us back here." She replied.

"Think I'll visit more than you do." Starling winced at his light joke.

"I know I have been visiting a lot, but I'm here now, and that's what counts." As she said the words the gates to the City opened revealing the City of Runaways.

"I have to stay by the door, so I can't walk you into to see the Boss man. You'll be okay?" He asked her.

Mary nodded, "I'll be fine, I remember the way." With a wave she kept walking to where she could get her info on Zatanna city was filled with building that the kids themselves built over the years, and have filled with supplies, and other things of that nature. The City looked more like a very large village than a city. As she walked by kids ranging from 5 to 18 stared her with wide eyes, some who knew her smiled and waved, others looked at her in awe. They didn't know one of Batman's kids knew about this places, and others looked at her with suspicious eyes, watching her every movement as if Starling was going to run and tell Batman about this place. One of them was a pretty little redhead, who had to be about 14 who Starling knew.

"Are you going to say hi to me, Chloe? " Starling asked. The red head stuck her nose far up into the air, and crossed her arms over her chest.

"Why would I greet an outsider like you. I'm only here to take you to Chris. He knows you're here, and has been complaining that you haven't been visiting." Chloe said not looking at Starling once. Keeping her proud nose in the air.

Mary sighed, "Of course he knows I'm here. Is there anything Chris can't see?" Chloe stared at Starling as if she were some kind of an idiot. "I'll take that as a no, geesh. Cold much. How have things been here, Chloe?"

"The same." she answered in a short tone, "Not that you would know what that was." She sneered.

"Whatever, " Starling replied. Chloe never did like her much, "I know my way to Chris's you don't have to show me. Go back and do whatever it is Chloes do." Starling shooed Chloe like she would a pet and Chloe gave her the most offended look Starling had ever seen on a person.

"Fine, but when you get lost. Don't come crying to me, just take your little mask wearing ass out of the City." She said then turned to leave, "I don't see why Chris trust this little Bat-freak." she mumbled then left Starling's sight. Chloe according to everyone didn't like any of the Bats. While others thought they were cool, Chloe consider Starling and the others to be a menace, Chris would never tell her why though. Starling stopped the thoughts about the angry Chloe and walked up to Chris's room. He was there like he always was, unless something big was going on.

"Stella!" He greeted with a hug, "it's been forever! How are you?" He asked pushing Starling onto the couch and taking a seat next to her.

Starling, When she first meet Chris, was first taken off of guard by the very hyper teenager, but mostly she was taken aback by the fact that not only did he know her first name he also knew her middle, and mention how she should go by Stella, commenting that Mary was too boring for a pretty girl like her. A month into her Starling career that was a lot to swallow. Starling almost peed herself in fear when she thought her secret identity had been compromised, but then Chris explained things. Chris was an immortal who had the power to see the past, present, and future of anyone he met, and that was how he knew her name. Starling calmed down a little then, but started to hyperventilate when she thought he was going to sell, her and her family's secret to the nearest tabloid. He had calmed her down by promising that he wouldn't dare. That's when Starling looked at his wall, on it were hundreds of pictures of kids who had stayed in the City, and she had recognized two very familiar faces, Jason and Stephanie. Mary never asked what the story behind that was, she wondered if she ever would, but honestly it was none of her business.

"Don't tell me. I know why you're here today, Mary-Stella." He said. "You want to ask me about Zatanna Zatara, correct?" He said. "I can help you, I meet her once as a kid."

"What's the catch?" Starling asked, narrowing her eyes at the immortal teenager. Chris gave her a knowing smirk.

"Can I not do anything just to be nice?" He asked all too innocently.

"When I first met you, you introduced yourself as Conman-Chris. Sorry if I'm a little wary. " she apologized sarcastically. "Now what's the price?" She asked again.

"You just keep your friend with the bat ears out of The City, and you can get info from me anytime." He promised with an outstretched hand. Mary didn't hesitate as she grabbed shaking it hardly.

"I'll do what I can, but you can only hide from the Bat from so long." She answered.

"We've been hiding since before his parents were born. I just don't want him sending all these kids back to the orphanage. Trust me they weren't good places in the 1700's, and they still aren't."

"Now Zatanna Zatara? "

Chris sat down in his swivel chair spinning for a moment before resting his hands on top his head. Thinking, he let out a sigh.

"She happened upon me once when she was 8. I think she got separated from her father and I found her in downtown Gotham late night during one of his shows." He reminisced

"And by meeting her you now knew we very thing about her. " Starling finished for him. "I know how your powers work Chris. Skip the drama. Where is Zatanna's hideout?" Chris huffed slightly offended that Starling had ended his trip down memory lane.

"Zatanna has a magically hidden hideout just outside Gotham on the way to Blüdhaven. I believe it's in between two willow trees." He said finally.

"Thanks, that's all I needed. " Starling was about to leave when chris' s voice stopped her.

"I'm going to warn you though, finding her might not have the outcome you expect." He foretold.

"You know what's going to happen." It wasn't a question. Of course, Chris knew what was going to happen. "Anything I want to know?" Starling paused. "Anything you can tell me?" she rephrased

Chris shook his head, "Nothing that won't change things in a bad way." Chris looked at his watch, "You should go now. You are meeting Nightwing in the park in half an hour."

"Thanks again, Chris." Starling said as she began to walk out.

"Stella," He called her out stopping Starling from leaving. Starling turned around to see Chris giving her a very meaningful look. "I'll see you soon." Starling nodded at his farewell, and headed out of the City. Saying goodbye to the children she knew, Starling headed back up to the uplands of Gotham and headed to the park to find her father waiting on her.

"Nightwing!" She called out as she swung down next to him in a discreet corner of the park.

"Starling, Did you find where Zatanna is?" He asked.

Starling nodded, "Yeah, I have a really good source. Her secret hideout is supposed to be just outside of Gotham in a the long stretch of land before we hit Blüdhaven, in between two willow trees. Vague, but vague enough that we can work with it."

"And Bruce thinks Zatanna knows what's going on?" Nightwing asked with a raised eyebrow as he led Starling to his car.

"If only he used those words exactly," Starling said with a sigh. "You know he never explains why he makes us do certain things. He just told me to keep an eye on her in case she takes off before he needs her. He should really stop doing that, it's getting kind of annoying." Nightwing chuckled slightly. "Lo and behold not an hour after Bruce left Zatanna was reported missing. Meaning she probably found something." Mary said getting into her father's car.

"But what could she have found out that could make her take off like that?"

"Wish I knew." Mary answered.

"Guess it's another night of us Nightwinging it..." Nightwing gave his daughter a goofy grin. "Eh eh? Get cause I'm-"

"Yes, I know cause you're Nightwing." Starling facepalmed and sighed. "And when exactly did you think of this one?"

"This morning." He said "I have like forty more. You wanna hear?" Starling just stared at her father.

"No! Never again."

"Since I am the parent here, you have to do what I say." Nightwing announced.

"Okay," Starling said grimly, "Let me just jump out of this moving car."

Nightwing frowned, "You're so sarcastic. I regret letting Jason train train you. You've picked up a lot of his characteristics."

"You never let me-"

"Shush!" He put a hand to her mouth "Let me be indenial." he said jokingly. Starling rolled her eyes. "You said two willow trees, right?"

"Yeah, are we here?" She asked leaning forward in the car looking through the windshield.

"I believe so." Nightwing pulled the car to a stop, and the two vigilantes got out looking around. Mary walked in between the two willow trees. Nothing of significance happened.

"So how exactly do we enter the secret hideout of a magician?" Starling asked.

"You don't." A voice called out from the darkness. Before Nightwing and Starling could turn to see who got the drop on them the mysterious voice called something else out. _"__Roodpart nepo!" _The ground beneath Starling's feet opened up, and deep into the ground she fell.

"Starling!" Nightwing shouted and dove into the hole after her. Together they fell into a room with red colored walls, but before they could get their bearings after the fall the voice again let out more words.

_"Sepor iet meht pu!" _Again with the words, out of nowhere ropes flew at Nightwing and Starling and wrapped around the two. "Now, " The owner of the voice stepped into the light revealing themselves to be a boy a little older than Starling. "Who are you and how did you find us?"

The boy looked familiar to Starling, but it was Nightwing who seemed to almost recognize the boy instantly.

"Zachary?" He choked out. Nightwing studied the boy for a moment. "No, you're too young, and...?" Nightwing's eyes widen. "That means you're-"

"Johnny!" A female voice this time rang into the room and stepping inside was none other than Zatanna Zatara. Zatanna stopped as soon as she enter the roomed looked around in surprise, clearly she didn't know about the two vigilantes being held captive. "What the hell is going on and Nightwing?" She asked with a tilted head.

"Hi Zatanna!" Nightwing said cheerfully. If he had use of his hands he would have waved.

Zatanna turned to the boy, "Johnny, what did you do?" She said pointing at the two gotham heroes.

"I saw them on the cameras looking around for this place so I decided to take care of them so you won't have to worry about it."

Zatanna sighed, "As good as your intentions were, next time you tell me when you see something on the monitors instead of taking care of it yourself. For all you know these two could have been our enemies, luckily their friends."

Johnny shrugged his shoulders, "These two didn't seem to be a problem how bad can someone else be?"

"Is it a bad time to mention that I got out of these ropes when Zatanna walked." Starling said standing up sliding the ropes off her body. Johnny held a shocked expression while Nightwing gave his protégé a disapproving look.

"It took you that long? We will be working on that when we get back home." He said to her also standing and taking the ropes off of himself. Nightwing turned away from his partner and addressed Zatanna, "Now that formalities are out of the way. As you probably already guessed Zatanna, we're not here on a social call."

"When are you bats ever?" She asked rhetorically. "I know what you want, and I can't help you. Just leave this case to me." Nightwing just raised an eyebrow at the Justice leaguer. Zatanna sighed, "You're not going to take no for an answer are you?"

"Listen," Starling cut in, "This case got personal when Batgirl ended up missing. We have multiple family and friend's lives on this, sorry but there is now why we are just going to leave this to you."

"Pretty girl, you're not the only one who's family was taken." Johnny said. "Besides you two will eventually end up captured too anyway." Zatanna quickly turned her head towards Johnny.

"Johnny!"

"Crap."

Nightwing narrowed his eyes, "I was going to ask nicely, but that doesn't seem to be working. You know what's going on, and you're going to tell us, now."

Zatanna looked around, looking for a way out of this situation, but of course none could be found. "At first, I wasn't exactly sure what was going on." She finally answered Nightwing taking a seat on the chair closest to her. "I was frantic, John had gone missing, and magic users everywhere were starting to disappear. I had no idea what was going on until recently."

"That's why you didn't show up for monitor duty today." Starling said filling in the holes. "You've been gone for days. We would have never even noticed if you weren't scheduled in for monitor duty on the Watch Tower. "

Zatanna nodded, "I realized that I had been looking at the picture all wrong instead of focusing on why everyone was taken, I began focusing on who."

"Magic users." Nightwing finished for her, "But we already knew that, but that doesn't explain why exactly people like Batgirl, Wonder Woman, and Captain Marvel were taken."

"Magical potential." Johnny answered. "All humans have a capacity for magic, this capacity varies between humans. Some will have a higher or better time learning magic than others, example you. You have a higher capacity for magic than most humans, in another life you could have easily donned the helmet of Fate and been Doctor fate." Johnny explained to Nightwing.

"So what you're saying is that those humans with a higher capacity of Magic and those who practice magic are being taken by an unknown entity?" Starling asked.

"Exactly," Zatanna nodded. "If we don't work fast more and more people will go missing, and I'm afraid I don't know what will happen to all of them when this all done and over with."

"You still don't know what's been taking everyone?" Nightwing asked

Johnny shook his head, "That's why we've been looking back into people they've taken, and realized something."

"There is no way John Constantine got captured without leaving something to tell us who has taken him." Zatanna finished for Johnny. "So, I left to go retrace his steps."

"And what did you find?" Nightwing asked

"The last place he was, was here in Shadowcrest. I've brought him here before and his favorite place here was the library, so I thought he must have left something there. He did."

Johnny snorted, "Some help that was. It was just a note that 3 books, and only two of them we have here."

"What books?" Nightwing asked.

"Nothing you would know." Zatanna said with a wave of her hand. "They only talked about types of demons, but none seemed to be the one were dealing with right now."

"If we're even dealing with a demon at all." Johnny added.

"And what of the last book?" Nightwing asked.

"I can't find it anywhere. Magic text is funny like that, it will hide itself sometimes." She answered with a shake of her head. Nightwing groaned and put a hand on his head.

"So we don't know anything more than we did before."

"Keep faith, Nightwing. I'm sure Batman and Robin will get something from the League of Assassins." Starling said. Both Nightwing and Staring turned to Zatanna and the young Johnny. "Thanks for help, Zatanna."

"Call us if you find anything else out." Nightwing looked evenly at the two. "Also try not to take off again. We found you before, and it'll be easier next time." Leaving it there, Nightwing and his young protégé began to take their leave as a scream came from outside. Johnny ran to the the window.

"It's a girl, some guys are chasing her." Johnny looked back to see both masked heroes gone from their positions in front of the door.

"Their already outside." Zatanna answered his unspoken question. "Let's go." Without another word to the young boy Zatanna ran out to meet Nightwing and Starling with Johnny trailing behind her. By the time they got their Nightwing and Starling were nowhere to be found.

Johnny looked around, and with sad eyes turned to Zatanna, "Do you think-"

"Boo." Johnny jumped and almost screamed only to have his mouth covered by a gloved hand belonging to Starling. "Don't scream." She told him before releasing his face. "Sorry, didn't think you would actually scream."

Johnny glared at the girl, "We thought you were taken like the rest of them." Starling raised an masked eyebrow.

"We just met. Didn't think you cared that much." She turned to Zatanna, "Is this place still cloaked? Nightwing's already back inside."

Zatanna nodded, "Yes, it is. Why?"

Starling didn't say anything only stare out into the darkness of the thin woods, "Someone's here. I can hear their heartbeat." Johnny stared at Starling with a confused look. She tapped her ear. "I have a hearing enhancer." She said almost a little too quickly. "People are here. Most likely the same ones who have been taking all of the people."

"So, that means we need to get out of here." Johnny said.

"No," Starling corrected, "that means we finally have a good lead."

* * *

"Nightwing." Starling called as she entered the room Zatanna and Johnny trailing behind her. "Did you get anything out of the girl yet."

Nightwing came out of the room closing the door behind him. "She refuses to talk to me. I don't know why I can't even get her to tell me who was chasing her."

"She's probably just scared of you." Zatanna answered "Bad people were chasing her and you did just kinda scoop her up and dump her in this house." Zatanna thought for a moment. "Why don't we send the kids to talk to her. Someone close to her age might give her some comfort."

Nightwing stared at the magician like she had two heads, "That is actually a great idea. Starling, you take Johnny in there, and find out anything this girl might know."

Starling was practically jumping with excitement, "It's been a while since we've had to do an interrogation! Please tell me we get to play 'Bad cop, Worse Cop'?"

"No, we don't want to scare her, or mentally scar her." He amended softly like there was nothing wrong with what she had just said. Meanwhile, Johnny now gawked at Starling like she had lost her mind. What middle school age girl ask if she can mentally scar a person through an interrogation? Zatanna didn't seemed at all fazed. "Just talk to her get all the information you can out of her. then come back here in about 5 minutes." Nightwing ordered.

Starling frowned obviously displeased with the lack of interrogating in this case, but nodded at what Nightwing said. "Fine, but that times going to be about three minutes if the people who are kidnapping people really the one's out there." She said in a singsong tone, not at all worried, as she grabbed Johnny by the arm and pulled him into the the room after her. Inside, sat the girl, dressed in a black hood, looking so familiar that Starling almost thought she knew the girl, but she couldn't quite place where. Her short, straight red hair that barely hung to her shoulders, and her eyes were of all colors violet. In all her years Starling never thought she would see a human with violet eyes. Then again, with the people she hung around it was a matter of time.

"I'm Starling, this is Johnny, how about we make this easier on all of us and get acquainted." She said with a smile. The girl didn't return the smile only now turn her would be heat vision glare onto Starling.

"Doesn't matter we're all dead anyway." She replied.

"What do you mean." Johnny said stepping forward.

"Like you all don't know." She mocked. Starling and Johnny turned towards each other giving one another a confused look.

"We really don't." Johnny said with a bit of impatience , "It would help us save your life quicker if you told us." The girl was now really looking at them, no longer glaring but giving them a concerned look.

"I thought the Heroes knew, I mean with so many of you missing you must have had to know that-"

"How about before you get into the long explanation of what the heck is going on you give us a name. I can't keep calling you girl in my head now can I?"

"My name isn't important."

"And I wasn't asking that. A name, now would be nice." Starling ordered.

I'm-" The girl hesitated "Ella, Ella Logan." She answered finally. Starling raised an eyebrow, but didn't comment on her name. Ella Logan. Ella, Ella, Starling had heard that name before somewhere she was sure of it. She thought hard for a second, but didn't come up with any Ella's in the Bat-computer's files, or on the Justice League Database. Still, the girl's name struck a chord within her.

"Okay, Ella, Why don't you tell me what's going on while Johnny gets the adults. I'm sure it's a story they would love to hear." I said. Johnny nodded and headed out the door to retrieve Zatanna and Nightwing.

"Okay, I first found out about in all from this book." From her bag she pulled out the book in question, and behind Starling coming from the door there was a loud gasp.

"The book!" Zatanna almost said with glee. "Johnny, it's the book!" Zatanna snatched the book away from the girl's hands. This is from my library here!" Zatanna turned to the girl. "How did you get it!?"

"I found it in a trunk fill with a bunch of my mom's old stuff. It was the only thing that wasn't covered in dust. I took it with me when I came across my mothers old storage unit two week's back."

"Who was your mother?" Zatanna asked.

"Probably someone Constantine knew from his many, many journeys. " Nightwing said deflecting the question. "Now can you give us the cliff notes version of what the hell is going on." Nightwing ordered the young girl. It seemed the older masked vigilante's presences made the girl uneasy, as she answered him no problem.

"It's a demon called The Collector. He sends out powerful underlings called the Seekers in order to collect, well people, He collects rare and beautiful people."

"You're saying he took all those people to put on his shelf?" Johnny asked mortified.

"No," Ella shook her head. "He took all those people for a far worse reason. The natural magic located in a lot of humans is food for him, he's feeding himself with them in order to create his return. He was banished from the earthly plain eons ago, but with this much natural magic in the air, he's going to use it to bring about his return."

"So that's why he was stealing magic users at first." Zatanna said.

"And then switched to those with only a great magical potential."

" And what happens to the ones he deems fit for his collection." Asked Starling.

"It says, well I don't know how much of it is true, that he turns them into clay figurines, and sticks them on his shelf." Ella said with a shudder.

"Weird." Starling commented. "Does The Collector absorb everyone at once or each at a time little by little."

Ella thought for a moment, "According to the book, all at once. He needs a certain amount of Magical energy to raise again from the prison he was placed in."

"Good, that means the people he has taken are still alive." Zatanna released a sigh of relief.

"That means we need a plan to stop The Collector, and free all those people." Starling said. Nightwing nodded in agreement, while Ella looked completely horrified by the idea.

"Stop The Collector?" She repeated. "You can't stop The Collector. He is one of the most powerful demons in the underworld." Ella cried. "If you were smart, you would run, and keep running till someone deals with him."

"But that's just it." Starling said looking Ella in the eye. "Who's going to deal with The Collector if we don't." She said seriously. "We have a chance to stop him before he gets into power, then we won't waste it. You don't have to help. This place is safe until The Collector is gone, and then we'll take you wherever you won't to go. You're a civilian, we really weren't expecting you to help us anyway." Starling said coldly. Ella bit her lip, face turning red in embarrassment, and shame.

"Starling," Nightwing reprimanded.

Starling only shrugged her shoulders unapologetically, and said, "We have work to do. You have a plan by now, right, Nightwing?" The older vigilante gave his partner a disapproving look, but still answered.

"Yes, I do."

"Alright then let's hear it." Zatanna said.

* * *

Three hours later as the dawn lights hit Gotham City, three pre-teen kids walk down the tunnels leading to the mysterious City of Runaways. The boy is limping, and must lean on The girl with the dark mask covering her eyes. The other girl with red hair, and violet eyes that seem to almost glow in the dark, clutches what looks to be a book to her chest. The kids look like they've gone through one hell of a fight.

At the end of the tunnel is a group of about four people only slightly older than the kids themselves.

"Welcome back, Stella. I told you I'd be seeing you soon." Chris said leaning against the wall near the entrance.

"You knew." She said as she glared at the teenager. "You knew, and you said nothing."

"I'm a neutral, Stella, I can't tell you everything." The girl didn't respond only continue to glare at him

"Ella, Hold Johnny." She ordered the other girl as she charged at Chris with all her might, which wasn't much considering the state she was in. Chris easily blocked her punch.

"What are you doing?"

"This is all your fault!" Starling screamed in his grip. "Because you refused to tell us information we needed twelve hours ago, Nightwing and Zatanna are gone! And The Collector is going to take over the world! All because of you and your selfish rules!" Tears began to fall. "I hope you're happy, because not only am I going to lose Stephanie, but Zatanna and Nightwing are gone, too! My dad is gone, and now the rest of the world is doomed."

* * *

_Final Word Count: 7267 (sorry about that) _

_I know, I know. It's been awhile. Like over month while. So sorry, but I did mention that with school getting back in session I would be a lot slower than my weekly/biweekly updates. I will try to make the wait between chapters shorter, but with my schedule the way it is I can't say it isn't a possibility that the wait won't be this long or longer again. So thank you all for those who stick with me! It makes me smile to know that you all read. _

_Other news, this is only half of the chapter. Like I said last chapter another ~15000 word chapter is never going to happen again, unless necessary. This chapter needed to be cut in Half and this was the half point for me to get this chapter to you all sooner than if I had waited to finish it. There is still about 10,000 words left for this two parter which is why I cut it here. I don't want to torture you all with a 17000 word chapter(I would die if I gave you guys that like legit die from embarrassment). Also I changed the chapter title, This chapter was originally supposed to be sweet and cute, yeah it turned dark real fast, needed a name change. _

_To my favorite Reviewer, Victory Goddess, Thank you for all your support. _

_Also extra points for anyone who knows who figures out who Ella actually is. ( I practically gave it to you). Until next time, _

_~Miyu Kuran _

_Next chapter: The Missing Part 2 _


	10. Nightwing and Starling 4

**_Nightwing &amp; Starling 4_**

**_The Missing Part 2 _**

Still in his grip, Starling growled in the face of the immortal teenager, Chris. "You!" She ground out. "You! You could have helped me save them!" She swung out her free hand in order to slap him in the face, but Chris threw her down to the ground harshly.

"Get a grip, Stella" He ordered. "This is the natural order of things. If I had told you what was going to happen, the others would be already dead, and so would you. I did what I had to do to keep the balance."

"That's all you neutrals ever care about!" Starling screamed. "You're precious balance. Yeah, your balance has been kept, but what about Nightwing! What about my dad, and Stephanie! Stephanie used to come down here! You don't care about them at all."

"Why don't you watch your mouth, you little freak," Chloe said getting in between Starling and Chris, "You ungrateful, insolent little-"

"Chloe, go back to The City. Now." Chris ordered.

"But Chris, you can't let this girl-"

"That wasn't a suggestion, Chloe." Chris said calmly, almost too calmly. It was in these moments that one could fully see the immortal's age. A normal teenager would have yelled back at Starling, but the calm Chris had years of experience that made him react in a more proper way. Chris turned to Starling, "Stella, you're upset and understandably so, but I need you to calm down. You and your friends here are injured, tired. Stay here the rest of the night, and I'll take care of your injuries." He offered.

"I think right now I would rather be taken by the Seekers, at least then I'd have a chance to get Nightwing and everyone else back." Starling shot back at him as she got up from her place on the ground. "No, I will not stay here. I'm far too upset to stay in your presence right now, Chris. I need a place to think of a plan, and that place isn't here." Starling took a deep breathe, and in a much calmer tone addressed Johnny, "Johnny, If you want to me get your mom back come with me, if not. Stay here until it's safe, and I get Zatanna back."

Johnny shook his head, "I'm with you all the way pretty girl," He said from Ella's side.

Starling smiled at the boy, "Good. Ella," She started. "I came here, not to pick a fight with Chris, but to drop you off. The City of Runaways is the place where all Gotham kids go when home is not an option. You should be safe here from The Seeker, and the Collector. Just because I just screamed my head off at Chris doesn't mean that you are not welcome here, or that I don't trust this place. This is the best place I could ever bring you other than the Batcave. You said you didn't want to fight The Collector, and you won't have to. Chris will accept you with open arms, right Chris?" Starling said, and behind her Chris nodded.

"But you won't stay here?" Ella asked.

"No, Johnny and I need to make a plan to stop The Collector. We can't do that here." Starling answered.

"Then you'll need to book, if you plan on stopping The Collector, and I'm not planning on giving it up. So, you'll have to take me with you." Ella announced.

"Ella." Johnny said shocked.

"I thought about what you said. You said that if we don't stop The Collector then no one is, and you're right." Ella said.

" I meant people like us," Starling said. gesturing to Johnny and herself. "I didn't mean a civilian such as yourself."

"But I'm not a normal civilian. I can do things that normal civilians can never imagine. I have a responsibility to use these powers in anyway that I can, and right now the best way to use them is to help you stop The Collector." Ella turned to Chris, "Thanks for your invitation, but I can't stay here. I have to help."

"I understand." Chris said. "Come here if you ever need help, Stella. I know you're upset, and when you calm down I'll be here. To do whatever I can."

Starling didn't even give Chris an answer as she turned to Ella and Johnny, "I have a place for us to till tomorrow night. Nobody should be there."

"Sounds like a plan." Johnny said. "Let's go."

* * *

_"This is what we're going to do." Nightwing said. "We're going to get ourselves captured." Zatanna, Johnny and Ella all stared at Nightwing as if he had just gone insane. _

_"Please tell me I'm not the only one who sees the problem with this plan." Ella said. _

_"No, no, no." Starling intervened. "I see what he's trying to do. Getting ourselves captured is the best way to get to The Collector, and most importantly to the missing people." _

_"Exactly," Nightwing nodded. "Right now we have no way of getting into The Collector's realm." _

_"So, we fake like we lost, and get captured. Then what?" Johnny asked._

_"We get everyone out, and then home." Starling answered like it was that simple. _

_"Yeah, but how exactly are we going to leave The Collector's realm?" Johnny pointed out._

_"Their is a inter-dimensional teleportation spell." Ella answered. She then paused as she thought for a moment, "Actually, I think it requires two magic users of the same blood in order to use it." _

_Johnny and Zatanna looked at each other, "Shouldn't be a problem." Zatanna said with a smirk. _

_"But it can only be used once. It's a hard spell, and if we mess it up our chance of escaping are completely gone." _

_"We'll get it the first time then," Johnny answered. _

_"In order to get everyone out, we'll need a diversion, though." Zatanna said. _

_"Diversion!" Starling echoed with a dangerous gleam in her eye, "I've got your diversion. I am the queen of diversions. Just imagine it a beautiful explosion created with tons and tons of C4." She started to ramble, going on and on about explosions,fire, and C4. The others were starting to get a little scared. _

_"Uh, I don't think so." Nightwing said popping the bubble of Starling's pyromaniac dream. _

_"What?" _

_"You're only going to be using what you have in your belt." Nightwing informed with a stern voice. _

_"What!" Starling repeated. "All I have is exploding gel!" _

_"Exactly, That's all you're going to need. You're creative, think of another way." Nightwing ordered leaving no room for argument, while Starling pouted. "Now that who's taking care of the distraction has been decided. Zatanna and Johnny, you'll be with me getting the civilians out, and the rest who have been captured." _

_"Okay, but how do we stop The Collector from just taking all the people, all over again?" Zatanna asked. _

_"I'm guessing that's my job, too." Starling answered. _

_"Starling, while we get everyone out, is going to damage what ever system The Collector uses to gather energy. I remember absorbing that much energy without help is dangerous, right?" Nightwing asked Zatanna. _

_"Yes, for a normal human, but I have no idea for a demon." She answered honestly. _

_"I'll work around it. He must have some weakness. While I'm there, I'll just have to find it."  
_

* * *

"We should be safe here for the moment." Starling said as she used the password to open the door to Oracle's clock tower. The place was currently unused with the Birds of Prey being elsewhere, and Starling knew Oracle wouldn't mind...that much.

"How long are we going to stay here?" Ella asked looking around the dark room.

"Not long," Starling answered. "just till tonight. We only need to stay here as long as it take to make a plan to take down The Collector and get everyone back."

"So what do we do in the mean time?" Johnny asked.

"Rest." Starling answered. "We'll need all of our energy in order fight."

Ella yawned, "That sounds awesome. Rest, can't remember the last time I did that." Starling smiled.

"Make yourself at home." Starling told the girl. "Kitchen's fully stocked. Shower's down the hall to the left, if you want to take one. I have clothes-"

"A shower!" The glee on Ella's face was undeniable as she ran down the hall to the bathroom. Johnny gave Starling a confused look before motioning for them to follow her. when they got there they found Ella staring at the shower like it was the eighth wonder of the world.

"Ella?" Johnny called her name carefully.

"You know being a runaway you don't see a bathroom let alone a shower as often as you would think. I can't even sleep without having to always be aware of my surroundings. You never think you would really miss little things like being able to go into deep sleep or taking a long hot shower. I can honestly count on one hand, how many showers I've had since I ran away."

"Take a shower then." Starling said shifting Johnny on her shoulder. "Take a long hot one."

Ella's eyes lit up, "Really?"

"Really." Starling said definitely. "Towels are in the closet, and I'll even wash your clothes."

"I think I may just take you up on that." Ella said with a smile as she went into the bathroom shutting the door behind her.

"Weird girl, " Johnny commented

"Not weird, we just don't know what she's been through." Starling corrected, "Come on, I bandage your ankle for you." Just as the sound of the shower started Starling lead Johnny away to take care of his injuries."

* * *

_"Everyone's in place." Starling told Nightwing through her comm link. _

_"Alright let the show begin." Nightwing said. Starling watched from the trees with Johnny as what looked to be Nightwing, Zatanna, Ella walking out of the mansion leaving the magically barrier, with a hand on her shoulder and a few whispers it really looked like Nightwing and Zatanna were taking the hooded girl somewhere else for her safekeeping. Looking around suspiciously Nightwing grabbed Ella's hand and began to move quickly Zatanna trailing behind. _

_"Johnny, we need to-"_

_"Shush!" He hushed her harshly. "Something's off." _

_"What are you talking about?" She asked worried. _

_"I believe he's talking about me." Johnny and Starling turned to see a woman with a long gold tattoo running down her face and a short black hair standing right behind Johnny. _

_"Crap!" Johnny tried to jump out of the way in time, but the woman grabbed him by the leg and threw him the ground below. Johnny was able to twist and lad on his feet, but there was an audible crack indicating it was likely broken or sprained. It took all of Johnny's strength not to scream out in pain, but he needed need to as Starling screamed for him, loud enough for almost everyone to hear. _

_"JOHNNY!" _

_In the clearing, Zatanna turned towards Starling's scream. _

_"Johnny?" Zatanna looked around worried. _

_"Don't," Ella grabbed a hold of her tailed coat, "You have to stick to the plan." _

_"My son is in danger." She told her, and with that Zatanna took off into the direction of Starling and Johnny. _

_"Zatanna, don't!" Nightwing called, but it was too late. Before Zatanna could even make to the woods, in a great show of fire seven of Seekers appeared. _

_"Look what we've got here." said one of the Seekers who looked to be the leader of the group. The man was skinny, and tall with long blond hair pulled into a low ponytail, and a gold tattoo on his face. "More people to feed our lord and master." The Seeker took a deep breathe taking in the air around him, "Where's the girl we were chasing earlier?" He asked his tone changing to a cold hard one, different from his earlier amusement. _

_"What are you talking about she's right here." Nightwing covered as he pushed Ella behind him, "And you're not getting her." _

_The seeker smiled, "We'll see about that." He turned to his fellow Seekers, "Take them all, with them The collector might finally be resurrected." _

_"Wait, Ikhail." The woman who found Starling and Johnny walked up throwing both to the ground in front of her. "Found these two in the trees, I think they were trying to plan something." _

_The Seeker, Ikhail sniffed the air, "I think you're right." He pointed over to Ella, "That's not the-" but before he could finish his sentence as Ella threw down a smoke bomb covering the area in deep smoke. "That's not the girl!" Ikhail said in a coughing fit, "It's a decoy!" As he said the words the enchantment faded revealing Ella to actually be Starling, and vise versa. _

_"Nightwing!" The actual Starling called. _

_"Get them!" Ikhail ordered. _

_"Get them out of here!" Nightwing screamed through the fog as he pulled out his escrima sticks. _

_Starling made her way through the fog to the sacred Ella, and the injured Johnny. "Are you two okay?" She asked quickly, They both nodded so Starling continued, "The plan is failing. They have more people than originally thought. Johnny, Ella you two might actually be joining us in getting captured."_

_"But Johnny," Ella said staring down at the boy who was holding his ankle. "He fell, his ankle." _

_Starling turned to Johnny, "How bad is it." _

_"On a scale from one to ten? It doesn't matter. The plan has to keep going." Johnny said. _

_"Don't say that. Looks like moving's not an option-" Starling grabbed both Ella and rolling them out of the way of a coming axe. "Time for talking's done. Johnny, I'm pretty sure you can fight, but Ella?" She asked. Honestly, Starling didn't have a choice. She couldn't watch both Ella, Johnny, Zatanna, and Nightwing. _

_Ella thought for a second, "I might have something up my sleeve."_

_"Now would be a good time!" Johnny screamed at her. _

_"Okay, just don't freak out." She said sadly as her violet eyes glowed violet, and she started speaking in a language that neither Johnny or Starling knew. _

_"What is she doing?" Starling asked. _

_"I don't know. I've never seen this kind of magic." Johnny answered from his place on the ground. The night sky filled with grey clouds as out from it came a giant black bird with four glowing violet eyes. _

_"Markov!" Ella shouted. "Attack!" With the command the bird swept down in the battle and knocked. They giant bird seemed to be the the edge that they needed as Seekers went down left and right. _

_"Call off your demon bird, girl!" Stopping the fight the kids turned to find the lead Seeker, Ikhail holding Zatanna hostage. _

_"MOM!" Johnny shouted, "Esaeler Annataz-" **  
**_

_"Don't!" Ikail pushed the dagger closer to her neck. "I'll kill her if you as so much as finish that spell, Magic boy. Now call off your demon bird." Ella narrowed her eyes at the man. "I said now" _

_Still glaring at the man Ella called to her bird, "Markov!" Hearing it's name the bird flew in a circle above Ella's head. _

_"Now, all of you are going to come quietly, or the magician gets it." Ikhail smelled the air, sensing the magic coming from all of them. "With all you you are more than enough to resurrect our Master. Actually," He grabbed Zatanna and turned her to face him, "This one he might want to keep. Doesn't matter we have enough to feed him now. Take them all." He ordered. "Try anything funny, and she might not make it to The Collector." _

_The Seekers moved towards Nightwing in order to grab him, but in a swift motion he tazered all three unconscious and made a run for Zatanna, "You three, Get out of here now!" He shouted at the three pre-teens. _

_"But, Nightwing!" Starling pleaded. _

_"I SAID NOW, STARLING!" _

_Starling nodded and turned to Johnny and Ella. With a nodded Ella called forth her giant bird once more, "Markov!" a second later all three children were gone leaving Nightwing and Zatanna alone with The Seekers. With the kids gone Nightwing stopped fighting letting The Seekers tackle him to the ground not trusting him enough to capture him standing. _

_"You think you're so smart." Ikhail mocked as he grabbed Nightwing by the hair harshly holding him close to his face, "Will find those kids again, and when we do they will be the first to be drained by The Collector."_

_ Nightwing promptly spat in Ikhail's face, "Over my dead body."_

_"That was the plan." Ikhail said with a sinister smirk, "Let's go, the night's almost up." opening a portal to The Collector's realm, The Seekers left taking Nightwing and Zatanna with them._

* * *

"Here take this." Starling handed Johnny two pills, "It will help with the pain."

"It won't make me sleepy, will it?" Johnny asked.

"Does it matter? You need to sleep anyway." She answered as she began to wrap his sprained ankle.

"I guess not." Johnny said. There was a long pause. "We really screwed up didn't we?" He asked ashamed.

"It wasn't your fault. The plan just failed. It was bad planning on Nightwing and I's part, it had nothing to do with you." She answered honestly.

"But we didn't follow the plan it would have probably worked if we-"

"We didn't account for the fact that they could sense the difference between Ella and I. That alone meant that they would have found a way to break through the barrier placed around Shadowcrest just to get to Ella, and would have found you there, too. Just because you two didn't stay in the mansion like we asked doesn't mean all of this is your fault." Starling sighed "Listen, no matter what we change, or do differently it might have ended up with all of us captured and no chance of any of us freeing the others or worse. I realize that now, and so should you."

"But-"

"No buts, I need you to focus so we can free not only Zatanna, but everyone else too."

"So what do we do now?" Johnny asked.

"Like I said earlier, rest. Then think of a plan." Starling said as she finished wrapping his ankle, "There, you should be able to walk better now."

"Thanks..." Johnny paused awkwardly, "So is your real name Stella, or something?" He asked. Starling sighed.

"If you must know it's my middle name." She said standing up heading to Oracle's computer.

"Middle name?" Johnny echoed, "So what's your first name?"

Starling turned and raised an eyebrow at him, "Does secret identity mean anything to you?"

Johnny raised his hands in a defeated position, "Sorry, sorry. Soooo," Johnny paused again, "Can I call you Stella?"

Starling sighed again.

"I mean- Only if that's cool with you." He corrected. "I could just keep calling you Star-"

"It's fine."

"-ling. I shouldn't have asked you, and- Wait, what?" He asked confused.

"I said it's fine, I don't really. My uncle calls me that sometimes, and so do a lot of people." Starling answered.

"Uncle?"

"Yeah, uncle. Don't you have one?" Starling asked.

Johnny shook his head, "My mother was an only child. My father's siblings all died a long time ago."

Starling frowned, "I'm sorry." She said sincerely, but Johnny waved it off.

"I never knew them, so it's fine." Starling nodded understanding.

"If you don't mind me asking, who was your father?" Starling asked.

Johnny froze. Starling immediately noticed. "I'm sorry. If you're uncomfortable answering, you don't have to. I don't have to know, really."

Johnny shook his head, "It's cool. It's just that my dad is John Constantine."

Starling stared at Johnny, "You're father is John Constantine." She repetitive. "He was the first one to get taken by The Collector."

"I know." He said sadly.

"Both of your parents are gone. Johnny, why didn't you say anything?" Starling asked.

"It needed to be said?" He asked, "that's why my mom and I were so Into this case. He's not set much of a dad, but he's there when I need him."

"We're going to get them back, Johnny, we're going to get everyone back." Starling held both of Johnny's hand as she looked him In the eyes, "I promise." They stayed like that for a while, speaking but not with words. They came to an understanding. They were going to save everyone.

"Starling!" A voice coming from the computer that Johnny didn't recognize called, scaring him Into dropping the vigilante's hand.

"Oracle!" Starling r to the computer taking a seat, "I thought you went to look for Black Bat, and seated what you can find about the missing people?"

"I am, or was until I got notice that you had come to the he clock tower. What are you doing, Starling?"

"Nothing, Oracle, nothing at all. Everything Is fine."

"Uh huh, " Oracle said not believing the girl at all. "Where's your father?"

"Nightwing?" Starling clarified. "He's around. He told me to go back home, but I wanted to check on everything first. The clocktower was the closest place."

"Okay, and who's with you?"

"Whaaaaat?" Starling drawled out, "What are you talking about? It's just me here." Starling lied.

"I can see him, Starling. " Oracle folded her arms across her chest. "Now let's try again. I know you have two people with you, no start from the beginning. I want the truth or else."

Johnny thought they were done for an adult would never let three kids take on a demon.

Starling sighed, "Babs, listen. Batman gave me and Nightwing the task of finding Zatanna Zatara, and we'll we found her. Nightwing decided the rest of the mission was too dangerous and told me to take the Zatanna's son and a girl we found to safety till they come back. This was the safest place besides the Batcave I could think of. "

"Okay, and where did Zatanna and Nightwing go?" Oracle asked.

Starling winced, "He didn't say. I think he was scared that I would follow him."

"As he should be." Oracle agreed. "Your very brave, but you hardly ever think before jumping Into the fray."

"I guess I'm better at winging it."

"I think It's the fact that Hood trained you." Oracle said. "The three of you stay there till It's get back tomorow night." Oracle eyed Starling carefully. "Can I trust you not to leave?"

Out of Oracle's sight Starling crossed her fingers, "of course, Babs. I may not listen to dad all the time, but I will always listen to you."

" I'll hold you to that than. I've got to go Helena found something."

"Alright, " and sight tailing logged off.

Johnny stared at the girl, "why did you promise get we'll stay? I thought you said that we were getting my mom and the others back."

Starling smirked and waved her crossed fingers in front of his face.

"Oh you are good." He commented with a pleased smile. "You really had me going there with your mom. I thought we were done for." Starling turned to Johnny so quickly that she almost scared him.

"Mom?"

Johnny raised an eyebrow at her, "Yeah, mom." Johnny studied Starling's face intently, "Wait, that's not your mom? She acts like it. I'm sorry I just assumed."

"No," Starling cut him off, "It's fine. I can kinda see where you would get that insinuation. Oracle is kinda like my mom, I guess." Starling said slightly grimly.

"Is she married to Nightwing or something? Is she like your step mom?" Starling almost laughed at the idea.

"Oh X'hal, no. Oracle is the woman my dad cheated on my mom with." Johnny widen his eyes at her, "Oh no, she's cool. Actually she didn't know my mom and my dad were going to get married. Obviously it didn't work out. She was his first crush back when he was a boy, and only Robin. I guess having an older girl dressed in a skin tight black costume can do a lot for the teenage hormones. It wasn't long after my father and my mother broke up that he got together with Barbara. They were together long before I came around. The third Robin was still in middle school when they were going out, and now he's in college to tell you how long ago it was."

"So they didn't get married." Johnny asked.

Starling snorted, "I highly doubt my dad would ever get married. I'm sure Oracle will find herself a husband who loves her greatly, but in the end they decided it was better just to be friends." Starling paused, "I don't blame Oracle, Nightwing is kinda horrible with relationships. He sweet and kind, but I would never set my own father up in a relationship that's saying something."

"Is Nightwing, some kind of a douchebag then?"

"No, like I said he's very sweet, respectable, and nice. It's just that my dad has a tendency to make poor life decisions." Starling laughed. She would sooner get married then her father, but really she could say the same thing about all of her family, from her father down to Damian. The only ones who looked as if they would ever get married was Tim and Stephanie, obviously.

"Okay, I kinda get that. I don't think my mom will ever get married, either." Johnny said honestly.

"Not even to your dad? Last I heard they were pretty close." Starling said shocked.

"Yeah they are, but they would never marry each other in a million years. Something about it not being safe, I really don't understand it. " Starling nodded understanding. "So, You're one of the few kid heroes that has the displeasure of having two hero parents. Annoying isn't it?"

Starling sighed, "Don't even get me started." She said with an eye roll. "I think the only other kid heroes who have it worse then having both parents be heroes is having a one parent be a hero and one a villain. It's absolutely terrible. I didn't think that anyone got that. It's like we-"

"Are held on higher pedestal than the others." Starling and Johnny turned to see Ella standing in the doorway, hair damp and a towel wrapped around her neck. "They don't say it, but it's like more is expected out of us. That we have to be above the normal, we don't get to be regular children. We don't get to be children at all. We don't have time to be selfish, because we have to train day in and day out to take our parents place. We are not children we a champions, champions in training to take the place of the titans that sit on mount olympus high above the rest of the world. I hate it. I almost hate them. They have stripped everything form me, and for what? World safety? What about my safety? I'm only 12. I shouldn't have to have the weight of the world on my shoulders."

Johnny and Starling stared at Ella stunned. Such venom they had never heard out of the girls mouth. It was in that moment that both realized they didn't really know anything about Ella. That Ella really hadn't said exactly who she was, she was a magic user and that was good enough for them at the time, but now?

"Ella, who are you?" Johnny asked.

Ella sighed and walked over to Starling and started typing on the computer. "If you look in any local paper, you can find my picture under the missing section, but if you search my name in league database..." On the computer a picture and a file showed up, it was a picture a picture of Ella. She looked a lot younger in the picture, her hair was way longer, as well, and the name under the picture is what got Starling Staring at Ella in shock.

"You're Aurella Logan?" Ella looked grim, "I thought I knew your name. Aurella Logan, you're the daughter of Beastboy and Raven. Your the one who ran away 2 months ago." Starling glared at Ella. "You do know that your mother went missing because she was out looking for you. When Magic users started going missing she went looking for you! and she never came back! You're father was devastated. He thought that maybe you got taken, too. Before this whole mess with The Collector. They were looking for you. Why did you run away?" Starling asked.

"That explains the demon bird." Johnny said but his comment was left ignored.

"I know," Ella said. "I was there when my mom went missing. I couldn't hide for long, and when she was really looking she found me, but The Seekers found us. She sacrificed herself so that I could get away. That was when I learned exactly who The Seekers and The collector were."

"And why didn't you go home with that information?" Johnny asked. "Your father would have given the info to the league and we could have better protected everyone. If you had only said something-"

"I KNOW! I KNOW I SCREWED UP OKAY, BUT I WAS RUNNING SCARED AND I COULDN'T- I DIDN'T KNOW WHAT TO DO!" Ella screamed at the boy. "I realized all of this is mostly my fault. If I had opened my mouth earlier, then a lot of people would still be here, but I ran away for a reason. And now I have even more of a reason to stay away."

"and you were selfish enough to just stay silent and let all those people go missing?" Starling asked almost seething in rage.

"I am not perfect." Ella sneered. "You're just like everyone else. You put me so far up, and you're just wanting me to fall. Am I the only kid that doesn't want to be some heroes sidekick? I don't want to take over for them when they get old and retire. I want to be my own person. I want to be a normal person. Is that to much to ask?"

Starling opened her mouth, ready to tell the girl off, but Johnny held up a hand silencing her, "No, it's not." He said, "But Ella do you understand that you are not normal, you will never be normal. Just like we will never be normal. No matter what you do, the people who raised you are always going to Raven and Beastboy."

"If my Parents were super villains then you all would be rooting for me to get away from them."

"BUT YOUR PARENTS AREN'T EVIL!" He screamed at her. "You're right, it is wrong what they do to us, but most of us choose to be in this life. I think at one point you wanted to be like your parent, but something happened and now you don't want to be like them. Well, now everyone is gone, you can keep being a "regular" citizen or you could save the world, save your mom with us. We're not going to force you. It's obvious that when people force you to do something you run, and I don't want you to run. I want you to choose for yourself. Now." Starling stayed silent while Johnny stared Ella down. "You choose. This is your first choice without adult intervention. Make it matter."

Ella stayed silently, she looked towards Starling, who only glared at the girl, and then again at Johnny. Unlike Starling, there was no harsh anger in his eyes. Ella then looked towards the door. It would be so easy for her to run. For her to get away. It wouldn't be the first time, and most likely it wouldn't be the last if she choose to leave, and run. Ella thought back to what Starling told her back in the City of Runaways. She had a chance to leave, yet she didn't take it. She made her choice to stay back then.

"I made my choice early when I said I would see this to the end. I meant it." Ella said. "I really messed up, so let me make it right."

"Good." Starling said "You better." Jaw still tight not even looking at Ella Starling turned back around to the computer. "You two get some sleep. I need to think of a plan. "

"You're not going to sleep, Stella?" Johnny asked. Tension in the room visibly went down, and Ella sighed in relief.

"I have things to do." Starling answered. Johnny stared at her worried. "I'll be fine. Trust me, if Batman can go over 10 days without sleep I can for one day." Johnny nodded.

"Fine, fine, fine. I'm going for a shower. Do you've got something for me to wear?" Johnny asked.

"Red Robin has some civvies in the back they'll be a little two big, but I'm sure they're fine for the night." Starling said. With a slight turn of her head Starling regarded Ella. "Bab- Oracle's room is down the hall across from the bathroom, you'll find a bed there. I'm guessing you haven't had a decent one in about two months. Go get some rest, we've got work to do tonight."

* * *

Ella woke first at the crack of 4:30 in the afternoon. Next to the bed on the floor was Johnny who was still out cold cuddling with the blanket. The boy with the hard face she spoke to last night was gone and now laid a young boy who looked his age. A soft face suited him much better. Ella stood up from the bed with a yawn. She could hardly believe that she slept that long, then again she did go to sleep around 9 this morning. Quietly she tiptoed around Johnny's sleeping from and made it out of the room.

"Oh good you're awake." A voice called. Ella almost jumped in fright. Sitting where she left her last night was Starling. Ella would have thought she stayed their the whole night, but her clothes were slightly different. When Ella had first met the girl she wore a similar outfit to Nightwing. Now it was almost completely different. A lot of the purple accents were gone, and in their place was more black and cape. The only thing that had stayed the same was the bird shape across her chest, except instead of being colored in it was only a purple outline.

"I changed because this outfit offers more protection, better stealth, and more room for weapons." Starling must have caught Ella looking her over, as she answered her unanswered question with a clip tone.

Ella narrowed her eyes, "You're mad at me."

Starling snorted, "You expected me not to be?" Ella opened her mouth to come up with a retort, but find her voice was lost to her. Indirectly Ella was the cause of people going missing, people who were close to Starling. "Cat got your tongue?" Starling asked slightly amused. "Don't get me wrong, I understand why you didn't come to the league with your information. It's understandable, but it doesn't make it right. I guess not everyone is born with that natural sense of justice I see within my family. If I were my uncle, the Red Hood, I wouldn't have forgiven you. You should be lucky I'm not because you might have found yourself waking up with a bullet in your head." Ella gasped, while Starling laughed. "I'm kidding." she said. Ella eyed her warily, "He doesn't kill to much these days, especially not kids. So you're safe."

"So you're not mad?" Ella asked confused. This morning Starling didn't seem as if she wanted anything to do with Ella.

"I am." Starling admitted. "But I'm sure you had your reasons. You said that you would help make things right so I'm going to hold you to that. Being brave isn't easy. For some, it comes easier than other, but what makes being brave really matter is when someone who originally isn't gifted with bravery does something brave, and I'm sure you will. So we're going to do something brave, we're going to save the day. "

"You sound confident." Ella noticed.

"I am. I spent all the time you guys were sleeping thinking of the perfect plan. What do we need to summon a demon?" Starling asked.

"Summon a demon?" Ella asked shocked. "That would be-"

"Crazy?" Starling finished for her, "Yes, it is, but really how else are we going to get to The Collectors realm?"

"I Don't think."

"She can't do it." Both girls turned to find a very disheveled looking Johnny walking towards them.

"What do you mean she can't do it?" Starling asked.

"You're Raven's daughter, right?" Johnny asked. Ella nodded. "That means she won't be able to summon a demon. First of all, that takes a lot of magic, and a lot of prep time. Second, all Trigon needs to come back into this realm is a blood relative. We can't have her accidentally summoning him, trust me he's much worse than The Collector, and we don't have the manpower or experience to take him down."

Starling nodded, "Okay, then you do it." She said simply.

"Did you not hear the 'lot of magic' or the 'lot of prep time' part?" Johnny asked.

"Okay, what do you need?" Starling asked

"First off a spell. I won't be able to use my normal backward speaking spells." Johnny said.

"I have the book all about The Collector here." Ella pointed out. "There might be a spell in order to summon one of Seekers."

Starling smirked, "Brilliant. Okay what else."

"I have my wand and my grandfather's silk hat with me, so other than that, whatever the spell asks for." Johnny informed.

"Okay, that's it?" Starling asked. A loud growling sound came from Ella's stomach.

"Food would be nice."

"On it. Ella, keep looking through the book with Johnny. I think we might just win this yet."

* * *

"Are we ready?" Starling asked. Three hours later they a had gathered everything that they needed. The plan had been discussed. They were ready. Both magic users nodded. "Then let's do this."

On a small table in front of them laid five candles in were placed in a circle in the middle laid a small porcelain bowl.

"First thing first," Johnny started. He powered a light powder in the bowl. "Burnt ashes."

Ella put a plant into the bowl, "Acacia to open the gates."

"Rare oils from the east." Johnny added to the bowl, "We need one more thing." Both Johnny and Ella turned to Starling.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" She asked.

"The rest of the spell calls for virgin blood." Ella answered honestly. Starling visibly paled.

"What are you guys saying-"

"Sorry, sorry! Gross no!" Ella screamed.

"Virgin blood means blood never used before in a ritual." Johnny clarified. "Really I mean come one. I'm 11 and she's 12 do you really think that we've done those kinds of things?"

"I literally just meet you yesterday." Starling reminded.

"Yes, and aren't we such good friends." Johnny drawled out in a sweet voice. "Now, your blood.

"It has to be me?" Starling questioned.

"Duh, Ella and and I have done rituals requiring blood before. It won't work with us" Johnny answered.

Starling sighed, "Fine." From her utility belt she pulled out a very expensive looking throwing knife which in the light had colors reflecting a rainbow.

Johnny blinked, "I could have sworn I've seen you with butterfly throwing knives."

Starling blushed under her domino mask, "So I collect throwing knives, what of it? Do you want the blood or not?"

"My bad, keep going." Johnny said holding his hands up in surrender, "What is it with Bats and lethal weapons?"

Starling ignored him while she mad a light cut in her hand, standing over the bowl, and letting it drop in.

"Alright, that's it." Ella said, "Johnny, the incantation." With a nod the young magician clapped his hands together, and with closed eyes began the latin incantation.

_"Attenrobendum eos, ad consiendrum, ad ligandum eos, potiter et solvendum, et ad, congregontum eos, coram me." _Wind swept through the room, and Johnny opened his eyes to reveal that his normally blue eyes glowed white. HIs hair swept haphazardly.

Starling watched in shock as Ella smiled in anticipation, "You might want to stand back." Ella grabbed the shocked Starling and moved her back away from Johnny as as the wind grew heavier and heavier. Starling and Ella shielded their eyes, and when they opened them on the floor sat one of The Seeker.

The wind stopped and slowly the white glow faded from Johnny's eyes.

"Holy crap, I can't believe that actually worked!" Was the first thing out of the boy's mouth. The Seeker laid on the ground unmoving.

"Is it dead?" Ella asked as she leaned foreword to check on The seeker. As if knowing what she was doing, The Seeker lunged forward at her intending to grab her only to be stopped by an invisible wall. Confused The seeker patted the wall, while Johnny looked on with an amused expression.

"Like it?" He asked mockingly, "My father taught it to me. It's called a Devil's Trap. It was made to hold demon, which I'm guessing you Seekers classify as low level demons. I wasn't sure it would work, but now I do. Thanks for the confirmation." The Seeker only growled at Johnny.

"Now that's not very nice." Ella said walking up to the demon, The demon flinched. "Oh we're not going to hurt you…yet. Right now we need you, and you're going to help us."

"I will never betray my lord." He hissed at Ella. "You think you children scare me? The Collector will do unto me ten fold then what ever you can even imagine."

"You really think?" Starling asked with raised eyebrows, Starling snorted. "Now I know what Batman feels like." She stalked closer to the seeker. Starling him down through her domino mask, "This is how you get a bad guy to do want you want."

* * *

"There are a total of 500 Seekers, all currently in The Collector's Realm, they shouldn't be an issue if you're discreet enough! Take the underground tunnels up and you'll be fine! Also the prisoners who weren't a problem were kept in the dungeon underneath the-"

"Stop." Starling ordered calmly "You're going slow down, and tell me everything I want to know. Do everything I need you to do, or else. Are we clear?" The Seeker nodded fervently, "Good. Now what do we call you."

"M-m-Markl!" He stuttered.

"Okay Markl, so there are 500 Seeker in total, and they won't be a problem with good stealth, right?"

"Right!" He chirped in a scared tone.

"And the best way is to go through the underground tunnels?"

"Yes!"

"Okay, Where are the prisoners?" Johnny asked, stepping forward. Markl, the seeker turned to Johnny grateful to be talking to someone other then the scary, masked girl who makes good on her threats.

"In the dungeon. The only way to get there undetected is to be brought there as a prisoner. My Lor- I mean The Collector is very serious about his collectables."

"Okay, good. Can you draw us map?" Ella asked.

"No, Milady." He answered. "The realm of The collector is very complicated to maneuver through."

Johnny snorted, "Oh yeah so you can-"

"That would be perfect, Markl." Starling cut him off.

"Um, Starling?" Johnny called out.

"You'll bring us to the collector's realm, and then you're going to take us to the prisoners." She ignored the boy.

"Starling?"

"And if you betray us. I will teach you the fear of God."

"Starling!" Johnny cried loudly.

"What!" Starling turned to Johnny quickly.

"Meeting. Other room. Now please." He ordered pointing down the hallway.

"Geez, your wasting time, Johnny." Starling groaned as she walked passed him down the hallway.

"Uhh, What about The Seeker?" Ella asked. Johnny shrugged.

"He's fine. Devil's trap," Johnny reminded, "He is not going anywhere."

With a sigh Ella followed Johnny and Starling into the hallway out of earshot from The Seeker.

"Well?" Starling asked with eyebrows raised.

"He's obviously going to betray us." Johnny said. "If we let him lead us it'll obviously be a trap."

"So let him." Starling shrugged. "He'll take you to where the other are anyway."

"They'll be prepared for us." Ella argued.

"Do you two trust me?" Starling asked. Johnny and Ella looked towards each other.

"Do we have a choice?" Johnny asked.

"No," Starling smirked. "You don't. Just know whatever happens it's best that you don't know the whole plan for now."

"Fine." Johnny groaned. He turned his back and walked back toward The Seeker, Markl. "I'll trust you on this one. Just don't screw up."

"Alright, Markl." Johnny started. "You'll take us to The Collector's Realm, and to the prisoners he's taken, got it?"

Markl nodded enthusiastically.

"Great, then let's go." Ella said. erasing a piece of the devil's trap setting The Seeker free. "Now, take us to The Collector's Realm."

"As you wish." Markl said. With a clap of his hands a blinding light was emitted and the three pre-teens were no longer in Oracle's Clocktower, but The Collector's realm. "Welcome to Noxignis Castle, The home of demon lord Bailitheo, The Collector."

It was not what one would quite expect from a demon's domain. Instead of the fire and brimstone the trio had been expecting there was a large castle and a relative state of calmness they had not been expecting. Behind the large castle made of stones as black as night were grey skies as if the color blue had been stripped away from it. The clouds hung there in a darker shade of gray unmoving. Then that's when Starling noticed there was no wind in this place. The air was stagnant as if it hadn't moved. The air smelled sour, though not too unpleasant as if to make a person gag, but as if the whole place had was close to being spoiled. It wasn't as scary of a place that the trio had imagined, though it still wasn't pleasant like the Earth.

Johnny whistled, "Good work, Markl. Now the prisoners." Markl nodded.

"We must take the underground tunnels, so not to be seen. Follow me quickly." With haste the four young heroes followed The seeker deep into the underground. The deeper they went the more the darkness grew around them.

"We'll need torches in a moment." Ella announced as the last bit of light began to fade.

"We will not find our way if we do not find the darkness in the light." Answered Markl, and as he said the words the last bit of light left them. Then not even a second later the tunnels was brighten with the soft light of violet crystal that hung from the ceiling of the tunnels, lighting there way.

"Oh my." Commented Ella

"Cool." Johnny said. He turned to Ella, "They match your eyes." He said and like a the little girl she was she took the comment with a blush turning her face away from Johnny.

"Stop that." Starling chided gently, "He is right, you know." Ella stuttered a thank you before they continued to move on through the tunnels.

"Is the dungeon the only place The Collector keeps prisoners?" Starling asked.

"Yes, It is." Markl answered quickly.

Johnny looked towards Starling who only nodded, and gave him a reassuring smile.

"Good. Let's hurry up and take back the people so we can get back home." Ella said as she began to walk up the stairs behind Markl. Johnny and Starling followed suit. The stair case was long and winding and the palely light by the violet crystals. They walked up in silence nothing needed to be said, and when they finally reached the top, as promised their were the dungeons.

"We've made it. We actually made it." Ella said slightly shocked.

"I can hardly believe it either, that was almost too easy." Johnny said with a relieved sigh.

"Don't count your blessings yet." Starling said. "We need to get these people out."

Ella nodded as she went up to the bars in the dungeon. "Stand back. I got this." Ella's eyes and hands glowed purple but before she could destroy the lock the glow slowly faded. Flickering until it went away completely. "My-my Magic!" She almost shouted. "It's gone!"

"It can't be." Johnny said pushing her aside. "Here let me. _Kcolnu_!" Nothing happened. "_Kcolnu_!" again nothing of significance happened. "My magic." Johnny said staring at hands. Johnny glared at Markl. "What did you do?"

The Seeker laughed, "Did you really think you would hold magically prisoners here without taking away their magic?" He told them. "You were fools to come here, and now you will die here." As if on cue the pre-teens were surrounded. The Seekers had known they were there.

Ella growled as her eyes again glowed that violet, "Don't!" Johnny screamed. "We're out numbered with out our powers. Face it, Ella, We lost this one." Johnny lifted his hands behind his head in surrender. With tears Ella raised her hands above her head. "We get it. It was a mistake coming here. We are outmatched, outnumbered, and outsmarted."

"You are right about that." A seeker came out from the massive crowd. It was the leader, Ikhail. "You are not only just children, but stupid children, and all you've done is bring yourselves to us. Now with you're magical energy The Collector will be free from this prison, and can take the world as his own." Ikhail boasted, "Tie them up, and put them with the other sacrifices. Without there magic they are useless no sense in putting them with extremely dangerous sacrifices. They are only children." As ordered The Seeker tied Johnny and Ella up.

"Wait!" Markl cried. "There were three of them. The other girl is gone." All Thee Seeker looked around for Starling, but it seemed she was long gone.

Ikhail grabbed Johnny's chin, "Where is the other girl?"

"I don't know!" He cried tears streaming down his face, "Starling, she disappears like this all the time!" Ikhail threw Johnny down.

"You lie!"

"He doesn't, Ikhail." Markl called out. "I have meet the girl. She is smarter then the these two. She may have sensed my betrayal and took off. She won't get too far in The Collector's Realm."

Ikhail thought for a minute, "You are right. Still send out a search party to find the girl, and put these two in a cell."

Markl grabbed Johnny and gripped him tight, "Coming here was a mistake. Your friend has abandoned you, and left you to die. Don't worry this is normal being in The Collector's Realm makes the closest of people betray their own family. I guess they can sense death approaching them." Markl smirked slyly at Johnny, "Now boy, I think it's time for your nap." He then punched Johnny in the gut hard enough for the boy's conscienceless to leave him.

* * *

When Johnny came to, he found a very worried Ella sitting over him.

"Hey." He greeted groggily.

"Hey yourself." She returned with a slight chuckle.

Johnny sat up, "Where are we?" He asked rubbing his head.

"Where we wanted to be. The dungeon." She answered with a grin. That woke Johnny up.

"We're in the dungeons?!" He asked again excitedly.

With a smile Ella nodded, "Yup, and we are not alone." Johnny then took a good look at his surroundings and around him were the faces of all the people who went missing. The everyone on the files that Starling had shown them were with them in this huge dark cell

From the dark corner a girl came out. She had blonde hair, and on her chest was the yellow symbol of the bat.

"You're Batgirl." Johnny said. She nodded.

"I am. I'm guessing you're Zatanna's son? " She asked.

"I am." He assured. "We've come to get you out."

Someone from the crowd spoke up. "No offense, but you're just two kids."

Batgirl turned to the crowd, "You would be surprised what kids can do." She turned back to Johnny and Ella. "Please tell me that there are more of you." She said in a whisper

"Don't worry we have a plan. This was part of the plan." Ella assured. "We just got to hope Starling comes through."

"Starling?" Batgirl asked. "She's here?"

"Yes, we planned to get captured to get all of you out." Johnny answered in a whisper. "She's making sure The Collector doesn't come back to Earth ever again."

"That's better then just escaping." Batgirl agreed.

"Is this everyone?" Ella asked.

Batgirl stared at them confused, "I thought you knew." She said somberly.

"Knew what?" Ella asked. Johnny got a horrible feeling in the pit of his stomach. "Knew what!"

Batgirl gave the two a sad look. "The people who caused the most trouble were taken. We don't know what happened to them."

"Who was taken!?" Johnny asked frantically, "Who was taken?!"

* * *

Starling stayed in the shadows. She did her best work there. She passed by column and column, and on these pillars she placed a little surprise that would cripple The Collector for a very long time. Markl had made one mistake, by showing her the tunnels he took away his only escape route and by blowing up not only the pillars holding up Noxignis Castle to make sure nothing was left standing. While walking in the caves Starling used her extra explosives to take out the underground cave. With that the whole Castle will be left of nothing but rubble. Destroying what ever The Collector planned use to suck the magical energy from all these people, and hopefully injury him and his Seekers in the process. The plan was perfect. And once everyone was freed Johnny and Zatanna would say the spell to trap The Collector in his realm for the next 400 years. She had left no holes. Starling was trained well.

Starling finished placing the last explosive on the final Base column. Now all she needed to do was to go to the dungeons and send all the missing people back to Earth. It seemed for once in her life a plan was actually going to work without any problems. Pleased with her work Starling moved on going back to the dungeons until a room caught the corner of her eye. It was a normal room, nothing about it really stood out, but it seems to make Starling's stomach drop. Following her gut, Starling walked into the room.

The room was scarcely light. Only candles providing a small amount of light, and in the room were statues. Of different people in different positions. Curiosity got the better of Starling. She trapped a candle stick from the holder and walked closer to the statue closest to her. The Statue in the light was now clear to Starling's eyes, and before her was not a statue, but a person. A person Starling knew.

"Wonder Woman?" Starling said almost horrified. It really was her She was covered in what looked to be clay, and was in a defensive position. She had gone out protecting herself. Starling almost panicked. If this is what was actually happening to the prisoners, then…. The Collector still needed their magical energy which meant he couldn't kill them yet. Starling held the statued Wonder Woman and put her head to her chest. It was faint. Starling was sure if she didn't have superior hearing she wouldn't be able to hear it, but there it was a, heart beat. Which meant that she was alive. Which meant everyone here was still alive, but who exactly was here?

Starling pulled out her flashlight and ran down the lines of statues, hoping-praying that Nightwing, Zatanna and Stephanie weren't here. Down the line she found heroes.

Captain Marvel

Dr. Fate

Tempest

Animal Man

Traci 13

Vixen

Raven

Talia al Ghul

All very powerful people, stuck in clay, unmoving. These people would have caused problems, made plans to escape, tricked guards, caused riots. knowing their personalities Starling knew they were put like this so they wouldn't cause trouble. It was smart take away those who would take charge, and the others would be sheep without a shepherd. The sad part was Stephanie would cause trouble, and when Nightwing got here, so would he. Stephanie, too. Starling sighed in relief as she noticed that one more statue remained. Slowly Starling walked up to it dropping her flashlight as she saw who the statue was.

"Nightwing?" She asked to no one at all, but there was no denying it. The statue that stood before her was her father, and she had no way to free him. Starling could have cried if she had the time, but there was still work to be done. The trapped heroes were still alive, and that was what mattered at the moment. She would worry about freeing them later.

As Starling left the room to go back to the dungeons a thought struck her. Nightwing was here, and Zatanna was with him when they got here. So where was Zatanna? Starling cursed softy to herself. She had a feeling Zatanna wasn't in the dungeons either. It seemed that fate had another thing in mind when Starling had hoped this mission run smoothly this time.

* * *

"Captain Marvel, Dr. Fate, Talia al Ghul, Tempest, Animal Man, Traci 13, Vixen, Wonder Woman, Raven, and Constantine are all missing still?" Ella asked. Johnny at the moment was slightly incapacitated.

"Now we can add Zatanna and Nightwing to that list." Batgirl said with a sigh.

"Where do they take them?"

"We don't know." Batgirl said with a shake of her head. "I wasn't one of the first ones taken, so I don't know the full story. According to Constantine, the first one taken was Dr. Fate."

It seemed the mention of his father brought Johnny out of his stupor. "Constantine? I thought you said he went missing with the others?"

"He was one of the final ones to disappear." Batgirl clarified, "First was Dr. Fate. He decided to fight back, but without his magic he was taken down easily and sent away. After that it was Tempest, Raven and Traci, They decided to try to pick the lock and escape. Constantine said he never say any of them after that. That's when Wonder Woman got here. I came a little after her, and she and Captain Marvel decided to stage a prison riot, take out the guards and make a run for it. Constantine tried to stop them, but they went with it anyway. We almost succeeded then Wonder Woman was taken down, and without proper leadership, we failed. They took away everyone they thought would cause trouble after that Captain Marvel ,Animal Man, Vixen, Talia. They would have taken me too, but Constantine knocked me out and hid me amongst the crowd. I think he liked my company. When I woke up, Constantine said he was going to find a way to get all of us out. The next day he was gone. Since then it's just been us. Morale is down, and nobody wanted to try escaping again or else we might end up like the others."

"But you still think we should fight." Ella said stating the obvious.

"Of course." Batgirl answered. "I'm a fighter. Sitting here, waiting to be saved. Isn't what I was trained to do."

"Then help us." Johnny said.

"You don't even have to ask, but the guards. We've tried everything."

"Not everything." Ella insisted. She turned to Johnny. "Johnny?"

He rolled his eyes, and muttered something under his breathe. He then, randomly, started coughing. A horrible coughing that made some think that he were dying. He then fell to the ground with a loud, dramatic bang.

"Help! Help!" Ella called out off the cells, "Help! I think he's allergic to something in here! If you don't help him, he'll die!" Batgirl had to admit, the girl was a stunning actress. She truly looked and sounded frantic.

"Why should we help some pitiful human." Shouted one of The Seekers from down the dark hall. It seemed that's where Ella's acting talent ended because she wasn't sure of what to say next. She stuttered quietly to herself before Batgirl came to her aid.

"Last I checked, you needed all of us!" Batgirl shouted. "You'll be short one sacrifice if you don't help him." There was some soft grumbling before two guards appeared.

"What does the boy need?" One of them asked.

"Medical attention." Ella shouted sounding frustrated, "He's going to go into anaphylactic shock!"

"Watch your tone, girl." The Seeker Growled at Ella. "We'll get the boy." He unlocked the door, and both Seekers walked inside towards the coughing Johnny on the ground. The Seeker who unlocked the door got down to pick the boy up, when Johnny suddenly stopped coughing.

"I mean, come on. This is the oldest trick in the book." Johnny said with a cocky grin.

Before the seekers could react, Batgirl had one in a choke hold, while Ella hit the other over the head with a big rock. Both were out cold. for most likely a while.

"I can't believe that actually worked." Batgirl announced.

"I can't believe you guys didn't try that one before." Johnny said looking over the two fallen Seekers. "Now all we got to do is find a place where our magic works."

"And find the others." Ella agreed.

"Great. Let's go."

* * *

One would think that Starling would have had a plan by now, but she didn't. She wasn't sure what to do. Go back to the dungeons, and tell everyone what had happened to their fellow heroes and that Johnny's mother was missing, or think of a plan. Starling choose think of a plan. Constantine was most likely done there meaning that Johnny and Constantine would open a portal back to earth, the spell required those of same blood to say the spell. She could free the civilians before putting them in danger to save the others. Her father would want that. They all would want that. They would rather stay statues then let those people die. So Starling had to think of a plan, because no matter the odds she was going to save everyone.

It seemed her only way out would be to make a deal with the devil.

* * *

"The coast is clear." Batgirl whispered as she gently jumped down from the ledge above. "I don't know for how long, so we need to move quickly." The heroes that were left, Johnny, and Ella guided the civilians down the large corridors. They had managed to make it up from the dungeons without getting noticed which was an amazing feat as over a thousand people with them. It seemed they understood the gravity of the situation and were as quiet as church mice as they made through Noxignis Castle.

Quickly they made their way to the next hallway when they were stopped by Batgirl.

"I think I hear something." She whispered to Johnny. He nodded, and watched as she disappeared in the darkness. Johnny peered around the corner and confirmed Batgirl's suspicions. Two Seekers. Were walking towards them. With too many people to hide, it became apparent that they were going to get caught. They had failed.

"OVER HERE LAMEOS !" Batgirl shouted at she jumped out from her hiding spot and ran in the other direction of the crowd.

"GO! Down the other hallway!" Johnny ordered. "Batgirl's giving us a chance to salvage this situation. Let's not waste it." They took off down the hallway when they heard Batgirl scream. Johnny stopped looking back towards where the girl and the Seekers had disappeared to.

"You can't." Ella called out to him

"But I can try." Johnny snatched his arm from the girl and took off in the direction Batgirl went only to find Batgirl fine and a seeker standing next to her dusting off his clothes. "Batgirl?" He asked legitimately confused.

"Oh!" She said as if she just remembered something, "Did I scare you with that scream? Sorry, he caught me off of guard." She explained.

"Okay, so why is a Seeker helping us?" Johnny asked.

"Cause I'm not actually a Seeker. To think my own son doesn't even recognize me." The magic faded with a small light as the Seeker before him turned into the supposedly missing, John Constantine. "Hello, Giovanni."

"Dad?"

* * *

The Collector was a very powerful, very old magical demon. He had powers like no other, but he was different from the other demons. Bailitheo, The Collector was a demon of class, of refinement. He hadn't spent over a century collecting the rarest and most expensive things in the universe for nothing. The Collector unlike other demons found beauty in what those small humans could create. He found a beauty in those people who were rare and beautiful, and When he returned to the plain of the living he would collect all those worthy, and be king over the humans. He wasn't unreasonable as other demons. The Humans had something to offer, and after century of taking their most valuable items and people, The Collector knew when he stumbled upon something he had never seen before.

And the masked girl clad in black and purple was a first, her words were also ones he hadn't heard in a long time.

"As a demon, you do make deals, right, Collector?" She said as with a confident smile. With an amused grin the Collector nodded. "Then do I have a deal for you."

* * *

"Where the hell have you been, Constantine?" Batgirl chided. "We all thought you got taken like the others!"

Constantine shrugged, "I told you I was going to get us out." He settled his gaze on his son, "But it seems someone beat me to it."

"I'm in trouble, aren't I?" Johnny said meekly.

"Oh loads, when we get your mother back." Constantine answered.

"Wait, you know where the others are?" Batgirl asked.

"Yes, and No."

"What do you mean?" Asked Johnny.

"I know where they are, but I doubt we can help them, or Zatanna right now."

"What happened to mom?"

Constantine sighed and took a hold of his son's shoulders, "It seems that Zatanna has been considered too rare for a sacrifice. The Collector took her as his own."

Batgirl gasped, "And the others?"

"We won't be much help unless we can figure out how to de-statue them." Constantine said plainly.

"Statues!" "How can you be so calm about this!" Batgirl and Johnny shouted at the same time.

"Sounds like you guys are having a party." Ella came from around the corner. "What? I had to make sure the civilians were alright." Ella said. "What's going on?"

"Nothing good, Ella. Nothing good at all."

* * *

"A deal, girl?" The Collector said in a booming voice. "You want to strike a deal with me, human?" When Starling had been expecting a demon. A demon was not what she got. Instead she got a very thin older man with gray hair, and a matching gray beard. The only way to tell the man was a demon was the black on yellow eyes that burned into Starling's own.

"Yes, a deal. Demons make deals. So I want to make a deal with you, Collector." Starling announced. "Or are you scared of a little girl's deal?"

"You mock me, girl?" He said with raised eyebrows, "Have you no fear?"

"I was taught young that fear is necessary, as well as overcoming it. I do not fear you because my life is not in danger." Starling answered.

"Who ever taught you was wise, indeed. It is clear that you have learned from the best." The Collector gave her a sly grin, "but you are wrong to not fear me."

"You really think?" She said, "My deal now, Collector."

"What kind of a deal does an insolent little girl have for me?"

"I will leave in peace should you release the all the people you have made statues for sacrifice." Starling said.

"Leave in peace" The Collector quoted, "and what could you possible do to me, girl?"

"I figured out a long time ago that you have to have something to syphon out the natural magical energy from the sacrifices. Magic alone won't work. So instead of finding out what device you are using. I'm just going to blow up your whole castle!" Starling said excitedly.

The Collector seemed slightly taken back by this proclamation.

"You think I'm joking." Starling announced as she pulled out the trigger, "But I'm as serious as can be." And Starling prayed that Ella and Johnny had said the spell to send them home.

* * *

"We have both of you here now. We should do the spell and send the civilians home." Ella said.

"And just leave, Nightwing and the others here?" Batgirl argued. "We can't!"

"Nightwing and the others are heroes. They would understand our decision, besides we aren't going. We're going to send the rest back to Earth, then we're going to save the others." Constantine announced.

"That works." Batgirl agreed. "Charlie- I mean Misfit is here she can get in contact with the league once we send them back, and make sure everyones okay."

"Good. Then let's get to work" Constantine said, "Now Johnny, I think you have a spell to teach me."

* * *

"And what of the rest sacrifices?" The Collector asked. "And your own life.

"Collateral damage." Starling answered with a shrug. "I'm not asking you to send them back to Earth, just free them from the spell. This includes Zatanna Zatara. I don't know where you have her, but free her, and the others. I promise if you do that I won't demolish this amazing castle you have here."

"You dare threaten me?"

"It's not a threat. It's a deal. A common standing ground between two people with equal gain." Starling clarified. "You get something and I get something. Seems fair to me."

"It is far from fair. I still get everything, while you, girl, get nothing. I wonder what trick you have up your sleeve?"

"Nothing I swear. But do we have a deal, Collector?" Starling asked.

The Collector got up from his throne and walked down to Starling. Taking her hand and knelling before her, he spoke. "We have a deal, and it shall be sealed with a kiss." He kissed the back of her hand. It had been done.

* * *

In the room of petrified heroes(and Talia), they were all suddenly released from their spell.

"By the gods" Wonder Woman muttered.

"Holy Crap, we're free." Captain Marvel laughed out loud. "We just might make it out of here alive!"

"Yes, but who is responsible for our freedom?" Raven asked, helping Nightwing up.

"I think I have a feeling." Nightwing answered.

* * *

"It's done." Constantine said, before them was a large spinning portal, and slowly the civilians started making there way through.

"Misfit. When you get back be sure to tell the league and Oracle what has happened." Batgirl told the younger girl.

"I will. I'll take care of the civilians, too."

"Atta girl, We'll see you all on the other side." Batgirl gave Misfit a hug before sending her through the portal after the rest.

"Ella," Johnny said turning to the girl. "I think you should go, too." Johnny told her seriously.

"What! I thought you and Starling wanted me to see this out till the end!" She yelled outraged.

"You did, your job is done now. You've officially atoned for your past mistakes." Johnny said trying to stay calm, "You can go now."

"But-but-but!"

"Your still running aren't you?" Ella froze at his words, "Your mom is here, and if she finds you here you can't run any more."

"Maybe it's time for me to stop running?" She asked him.

"No, you made your choice to run, now stick with it." Johnny told her. "I think you need to stay out of your mom's shadow, and make your place in this world. So go, and don't look back."

"How will I know if all of you made it out safely?" she asked.

"When we get out I'll find you. Promise." Johnny told her. Ella nodded and headed to the portal, but before going in she turned back and gave Johnny a hug.

"Thank you, Johnny." She whispered in his ear before going through the portal.

"Batgirl, I think you should go, too." Constantine told the blonde girl.

She snorted, "Hell no. Starling and Nightwing are still here, and I'm not leaving without them. Come on, we've got people to save."

* * *

The Collector stood from his position on his knees, "Your deal is now complete, but I ponder how you will get out of this girl because I think I may keep you. you are very interesting. Yes, I think I like you very much. Send her to the oven to be molded and baked. I'll take care of her later." Starling was then grabbed by two seekers who began to drag her off when another Seeker came running in.

"My Lord, It seems that the sacrifices have escaped from the dungeons. We have searched and we believe they have made it out of Noxignis."

"HALT!" The Collector order the Seekers dragging Starling off. "What have you done, girl."

Starling chuckled, "I have done nothing. It seems to me they have escaped on their own. Terribly sorry." Starling said sarcastically.

"I thought You would make a nice figurine for my self, but now I think I would prefer your head on my wall!" The Collector screamed in anger. With a mighty yell he raised his hands and summoned what looked to be a large sword. "Hold her down, lest I ruin her pretty hair." The Collector sung his sword up and Starling closed her eyes, slightly pleased the other made it out. She didn't need to fear the death coming towards because she knew she was not dying today. If the others escaped that meant she could too. So when the feeling of flying came to her instead of the feeling of getting her head chopped off Starling wasn't all that surprised. She was surprised by who saved her though.

"Damian!" She cried so happy to see him for once. "Holy crap, you're here!" they were currently swing through the air. Damian had picked her up before she got decapitated.

"No real names in the field, Starling." He mocked, but the smirk on his face let Starling knew he was relived to see her. She did almost in fact have her head cut off and mounted on a wall.

"Wait if you're here that means-" Starling was cut off by the sounds of terrified screams, and groans of pain. "Batman!" She sighed in relief. Her work wasn't for nothing then. Robin and Starling landed next to Batman taking out about four Seekers with a very well done toe touch on Starling's part and a back flip from Robin.

"You're a little late to the party, Bats." Starling joked, "I was just about to clean house."

"Looked more like they were cleaning you up." Robin snorted. Starling rolled her eyes before punching a seeker in the face.

"Care to explain what's going on, Starling." Batman's gruff voice asked as he took out another three seekers.

"Oh I'm in trouble, aren't I?"

"Big time." Robin answered.

Starling sighed, "Well, we found Zatanna." Starling started, "and lets just say I kinda got Nightwing and her captured."

Robin stopped fighting and looked at her in shock, "What!" he ducked before a Seeker could take advantage of his momentary distraction, and kicked him in the gut.

"And?" Batman growled.

"A magical girl we found on the streets, Zatanna's son, and I-"

"Wait Zatanna's son? You mean Giovanni?" Batman asked.

"Is that his real name? We mostly just called him Johnny." Starling answered, "Anyway, we made a plan got here, and we freed all of the sacrifices that weren't statues."

"People were statues!" Robin shouted at her. "You really fucked up, Starling."

" Shut up! You weren't even around! You know what! I'll tell you later!" Starling shouted as she threw a seeker into Batman grip where he knocked him out.

"A time where we are not outnumbered would be good." Batman agreed.

"Looks like you guys could use some help!" A voice called. Coming down through the door was none other then Batgirl, with Johnny and Constantine( Who looked incredibly displeased, and smoking a cigarette.) "Good thing we came to save your asses."

"Batgirl, language." Batman reprimanded.

Batgirl looked outraged as "Robin just cursed!- Whatever! I don't know why I bother!" She hissed as she threw some batarangs.

Johnny jumped into the fray after Batgirl muttering backwards spells sending Seekers flying through the air. John Constantine however stood by the door still smoking his cigarette.

"What's wrong with Lung Cancer over there." Robin jerked his thumb in Constantine's direction.

The dark knight threw his opponent to the ground before answering, "He's more of a brain over brawn guy. He usually only fights when he has to."

"You need an invite or something, Constantine!" Batgirl shouted as she flipped over Seeker hitting him with her bo staff.

Constantine sighed before dropping his cigarette, and putting it out with his foot. It took him two steps before a Seeker came up to him ready to attack, next thing everyone knew the Seeker was on the ground, holding his side, because a knife had been elegantly shoved into it.

"Did he just?" Robin asked.

"If by just you mean stole another seeker's knife before stabbing the one attacking him, then yes he did just." Starling answered.

Batman raised an eyebrow at the children, "I said he didn't like to fight not that he couldn't."

"Father," Damian said in awe, "This man fights dirty... Can we keep him?"

"NO!" Batgirl, Batman and Starling all shouted at once.

"The one time I wasn't serious." Robin grumbled.

With all of them working together it seemed that the Seeker stood no chance, and their number started to diminish.

"ENOUGH!" Suddenly The Collector that Starling had just been dealing with changed into a monstrous form. The old man in the gray suit no longer existed in his stead was a giant monster of gray with wings that spanned the whole room. His fist alone was the size of a SUV, and he then proceeded to bring that fist down onto the floor below them causing it to open up, most likely with magic because it had flames at the bottom. Flames.

With no hesitation The Bats pulled out their grapples and quickly made it to higher ground. Batgirl had grabbed Constantine, while Starling Reached for Johnny. Unluckily, the floor underneath him gave away, and the boy started to fall into the cavern of flame.

"Johnny!" Starling cried. Without even a second thought she released her line and dived after her friend.

"Damn it! Starling! That was you only retractable grapple!" Robin shouted after her. He cursed to himself. There was nothing he could for them.

Luckily, Starling had used some of her brain that wasn't panicking and fired another line towards the ceiling, and caught Johnny with ease.

"Crap!" Starling shouted in pain from the jolt when caught Johnny.

"Star!?" Johnny looked up at her with worry.

"I'm fine." She gritted through her teeth. "Johnny, I need you to climb up the line." She told him careful.

"Climb up?"

"Yes!" She snapped, "Sorry, I can't hold the both of us for too long, just long enough for you to climb up. I'll be right behind you."

"Are you sure?"

"Hurry and go!" She shouted at him. Johnny nodded and swing up when he stopped. "Why are you stopping? I thought I told you that I couldn't hold both of us for two long!"

"Starling?" He called.

"What?" She gritted through her teeth.

"You might what to look up." He told her with wide eyes. Starling did as she was told and looked up towards the opening of the hole. There to her horror holding their line was The Demonfied Collector as he grinned sadistically at them.

"I wanted your head on my wall, girl, but I will settle for this. It is just as satisfying."

"NO! WAIT NO!" Starling shouted as The Collector released their line, and the two children began to plummet towards the fiery hell waiting for them below.

Suddenly in two flashes of red rushed by Johnny and Starling, and they stopped falling.

"Holy Crap! Wonder Woman, I have never been so glad to see you!" Starling sighed relief. The amazon had caught her while CaptainMarvel had caught Johnny.

"And I you, Little Sister. Wasn't it you who freed us from being statues?" She asked with a smile.

"No big deal," Starling said with a shrug. "You would have done the same with me." Starling returned the smile.

"Now then, isn't time we take down a certain kidnapping demon."

"I think so." And the two flew back to the surface where the other were currently taking on the giant Collector, including her father. All of the people in the room who were clay statues were now free and fighting The Collector. All except Zatanna. Starling wondered if the deal worked for her.

"Starling!" Nightwing swung down from one of the rafters below.

"Nightwing!" Starling said excitedly.

"Thank you, Diana." He said nodding to the Amazon. She nodded in return then flew off to fight with the others. He turned to his daughter. "If I didn't know any better I would say that three pre-teens just saved the world."

"Please, we're not even done yet!" Starling laughed flipping away towards the fight.

"Bout time you joined us, mini Grayson." Robin said coming behind her

"I had a flight to catch." Starling joked.

"Well, how about a maneuver seven then?" Robin suggested. Starling nodded and jumped into his awaiting hands was boosted into the air. As trained she threw two Wing-dings that hit The Collector in the face,and exploded on impact.

"Eat that!" She shouted with a fist in the air.

"Don't celebrate yet, Starling!" Robin shouted at her. In the air, Starling turned to see that her exploding wing-dings on temporarily blinded the giant demon. With a growl, The collector swung his giant hand hitting her and sending her flying straight into Robin and they both tumbled till they hit the castle wall.

"Ouchie." Starling said rubbing her head, still on top of Robin.

"Get off!" He roughly shoved the girl off of him, and she landed next to him with a soft thump.

"What are we going to do, Robin?" Starling asked

"We banish it back to hell!" A voice answered. Starling and Robin turned to see none other than Zatanna standing on top of The Collector's throne.

"Wait, we can banish it?" Constantine asked.

Zatanna only nodded, "You climbed out of hell, and created a side dimension here, Collector, but I will be sending you back!" Zatanna proclaimed. "Dimisissem daemon, relinque hic locus. Eo retrosum ad apage!" Zatanna shouted, then repeated.

"A latin spell?" Traci 13 shouted "I do love the classics." And she joined in with Zatanna's chanting.

"Exorcise him? Why didn't I think of that?" Constantine said with an eye roll before joining in. Soon all of the magic users were chanting the spell,and with each one that joined in the Collector screamed in pain.

"You really thought you could get away with this, demon!" Zatanna shouted. "Begone! And never return!" A giant portal opened underneath the collector.

"_FOOLS" THE COLLECTOR SHOUTED AS LONG AS THIS CASTLE EXSIST SO DO I!" He shouted, "I will return!" he shouted griping the ground to keep from falling into the portal to hell._

"Well, it's a good thing I planted all those explosives isn't it?" Starling said with a cheeky grin.

The Collector looked horrified, "_Girl! I swear one day I will have your head!" He screamed, still gripping the ground. _

"The name is Starling!" Starling shouted as she kicked the Collector into the portal to hell. "Remember it!" She shouted after him.

"Quickly, we have to destroy the castle, or he'll just come right back!" Zatanna said, jumping down from her postion and joining the others.

"Starling?" Johnny said.

"I-I-I Can't" Starling stuttered.

"What do you mean you can't?" Nightwing asked. "You have the trigger, and oyu weren't lying about the explosives, were you?"

Starling shook her head, "I wasn't! It's just that. If I push the button all of you will turn back into stone."

"What!" "I don't understand" "Back into statues!"

"Starling, explain. Now." Nightwing ordered.

Starling sighed, "I made a deal with The Collector. I wouldn't destroy the castle if he set you all free. It was the only leverage I had, and the only way I knew to set you all free. So I took the chance. Sorry, but I can't destroy this castle." Starling said sadly.

"Oh give me the trigger." Robin groaned as he snatched it away from Starling. "I'll do it." and he pushed the button.

"Robin!" Batgirl shouted, "You could have waited. You know, till we had a way out!"

Robin rolled his eyes, "Father."

There was a large boom, and opening behind them was a boom tube.

"A boom tube? Really, Batman?" Wonder Woman asked with a raised eyebrow.

"You'd be surprised what Ra's al Ghul keeps in his hide outs." Was Batman's only answer.

"Then, Beloved, I will be taking it back." Talia al Ghul said. Starling had almost forgotten she was there. Everyone grew silent. It seem Starling wasn't the only one.

Nightwing coughed awkwardly which made Batman send a glare his way. Nightwing whistled as he walked into the boom tube, taking Starling with him. It seemed to be the end of Starling's little heroes adventure,and honestly the only thing she wished for was home

* * *

They had all made it home safely. The Collector was no more, and the only story not finished was that of the three children who had saved the day, thought to the knowledge of the league it was only two.

"This is the place you told her to meet us, right?" Starling said. They were both in public wearing civvies. To hide her identity Starling wore a pair of dark shade, while Johnny only wore a hoodie to cover up his tux.

"Yeah, this it, and we're on time." Johnny said proudly.

Starling rolled her eyes in a very Damian like manner, "How surprising." She muttered sarcastically.

"Come on." Johnny grabbed her hand, "She's probably inside." They both went inside to find Ella sitting at a booth waiting for them. Her face lit up as she saw them.

"You guys are back!" Ella said excitedly.

"Of course, we are. You had any doubt." Jonny said chin in the air as he sat down next to her.

"No, but I'm still grateful all of you made it out safely." She said.

"Listen, Ella," Johnny started hesitantly. "We talked to your mom." Ella froze.

"What?" She sounded so upset at the thought of them talking to her mother.

"We didn't tell her anything." Starling amended. "But she did ask about you." Starling added.

Ella didn't look at them, "What did you tell her?" Ella asked softly.

"She asked if you had gotten captured, or if we saw you." Johnny said

"and we told her we hadn't." Starling finished, "Which wasn't a complete lie. You weren't captured so..."

"And how did you keep Batgirl, Nightwing, Constantine, and Zatanna quiet." Ella asked.

"They never knew who you really were so it didn't take much to convince them that you had split after the battle. You did hold needed info from the league for weeks on end." Johnny said.

Ella groaned don't remind me, "Don't remind me."

"It's fine. You've completely made up for that." Starling said.

"so what are we going to do now?" Ella asked, and that certainly was the question. What were are young heroes going to do now.

"I have to meet my mom at the airport." Johnny finally said after a long pause. "We're heading back to Las Vegas."

Ella looked toward Starling, "I have my work here with Batman, and Nightwing." Starling said with a sigh. Ella frowned. It seemed the only two friends she had ever made were going to be leaving her. "but I did think of you." Starling reached in her pocket and pulled out train tickets and some cash.

"Here are train tickets down to Latla City in Georgia." Starling said, "Down there you'll find a circus that will hire you no questions asked." Ella's pout grew into a smile. "You like animals, right?" Ella nodded, "Good. The animal tamer needs a new assistant."

"You can go down there!" Johnny said excitedly, "Isn't that great?!"

"Then, next time we see you, you'll be a better person. So you can face not only us"

"But your mother, too. She won't hear about you from us." Johnny said seriously.

"We don't really approve, but as your friends, we're going to help you anyway." Starling said. "But you have to promise us that when you get to Latla you'll contact your family. They're worried about you, and want to know that your safe."

Ella nodded, "Thank you." She said.

"So you promise?" Johnny asked.

"I promise. I promise. I can't guarantee that I'll go back home, but I'll contact them."

"Good thing we weren't asking for that then." Johnny joked. "If your mom knew what you did to save the others, she'd be proud of you, Aurella."

"I can only hope."

"I've got to get to school, and Johnny you have a plane to catch. So, Ella will be leaving now, but we'll see you again. We promise." Starling said, "Your train leaves at noon by the way, you also have enough money to get you anything you should need."

"Thank you, for everything." She said standing up hugging them both.

"Come on, Johnny. We'll see you later, Ella." Starling said with a smile leading Johnny out of the restaurant.

Ella smiled to herself, maybe there was hope for Aurella Logan yet. Maybe one day she could be just as good as Johnny and Starling. Ella drank a sip of her juice. She could only hope that next time they meet she would be.

* * *

_Final word count: 15,628(MY LORD) _

_Like I mentioned last chapter, this two parter was not supposed to be a two parter. It was supposed to be a cute little one shot story, but that failed. So here we have I first multi-part chapter, The Missing. I kinda liked this chapter. Though it took a while to write I did love every minute writing it. I had a lot of good character moments that I loved and I hope you will, too. Two part chapter won't be happening often I only have another one planned and that isn't till the next arc so no worries yet. _

_Anyway, Ella is a character I created. I'm slightly partial to the BBXRae ship but I don't ship it that much. I just thought Ella would be an interesting character to have later on, if you guys enjoyed her. The one thing I love about is that I can get honest feedback from you guys and that does help in my writing. Also I apologize for anything wrong with this chapter I am editing it at 3 in the morning, and should go to bed cause i got to be up before 8. Oh well..._

_Sorry, again for taking so long with this chapter, but Senior year is kicking my ass. Marching Band season is almost over and then I'll have more writing time. Other than that I'm really excited about next chapter. We'll get an in depth look into Mary's brain, and we get another visit from everyone's favorite psychopath, Alicia Royal, The Red Queen. _

_Special thanks to Victory Goddess who always reviews! You are amazing, and I'm will be loyal to you forever! _

_Hope you enjoyed this chapter. See you in the next one. _

_Next Chapter: The Insanity of Mary Grayson._

_Until next time,_

_~Miyu k. _


	11. Nightwing and Starling 5

_The Insanity of Mary Grayson_

Poison Ivy often found that the people of Gotham City cared little for the environment around them. They had lives in the urban jungle, and cared not for the actual one. Their lives revolved around money, sex, and power. They hardly even cared about their fellow man, and Ivy knew that she couldn't expect them to actually care about plants. So, when Nightwing and Starling had caught her when she decided to to destroy the company planning to cut down the trees just sitting outside of Gotham she knew they were just the same as everyone else, until Starling left her handcuffs unlocked.

Ivy at first thought that this was a mistake till she made eye contact with the girl. It was brief, but it was there the same passion for nature that Ivy herself had. She almost couldn't believe it, that one of the sainted bats had not only set her free, but did it under the nose of Nightwing. Of course, when he had noticed, Ivy saw, that he immediately knew what what his young sidekick had done, but by then it was too late. Poison Ivy had gotten away. She owed that kid one.

* * *

"Mary, I can't believe that you did that!" Her father shouted at her. They were currently in the bat-bunker. Nightwing was thankful Bruce was in town tonight, but didn't need them.

Mary turned her head away from him, "I don't think she should be sent to Arkham." She said indignantly.

"Poison Ivy is insane!" Nightwing reminded his daughter. "She needs to be kept in Arkham before she hurts innocent people. Do you really want her to hurt innocent civilians?" He talked down to her.

"No," Mary said with guilt.

"So why did you let Ivy go, Mary? Help me to understand, why you did it."

Mary looked to her father finally, "I don't think that she should be sent to jail for doing the right thing."

"What?"

"I think she was doing the right thing." Mary said again.

"Mary, she was hurting people."

"We hurt people all the time." Mary argued.

"That's different."

"How? How is it possibly different?"

"Those are bad people, Mary." Nightwing said. "You know this. Why are you acting like this all of a sudden."

"I'm not acting like this all of a sudden always thought this."

"That what poison Ivy does is okay."

"No. I don't agree with her hurting civilians, but some people only understand with a-" Mary paused.

"A what, Mar'i" Her father gave her a look that she knew meant she may have gone a little too far this time.

"A little incentive. Isn't it like what we do?" Mary asked.

"No, it is nothing like what we do. I had thought you understood that."

* * *

The conversation had ended with that. Dick, of course, was a little upset at the altercation and had yet to talk about it again with Mary. After telling Barbara the situation, Babs had said that Dick needed time to think about how he was going to explain it to Mary. When Mary had ask for an explanation from Barbara, she politely declined saying that Dick needed to do this. Mary voiced her confusion, but Barbara laughed it off telling her that was completely normally. That she would understand when she was older. No matter on Earth or on Tamaran that seemed to be every adult's favorite phrase.

The next night, as usual Nightwing &amp; Starling went out on patrol. It was around 2 in the morning when Oracle rang a call to NIghtwing's and Starling's earpieces.

"Nightwing? Starling?" She called. Her breath seemed to be heavier, and her voice quick, almost in fright.

Nightwing was on immediate alert, "Oracle? What is it?" Something was wrong, seriously wrong.

"The Joker is in your area. " Starling heard through her earpiece, and honestly she never thought she ever seen her father so pale.

"Dad?" She asked him worriedly. Nightwing quickly shook off whatever thoughts were in his mind and turned to his daughter.

"Mary, go home." Nightwing ordered.

"What!" Starling answered in shock and outrage. "But I can help you! The Joker is dangerous, and-"

"And exactly. The Joker is dangerous, and I don't want to put you in harm's way." Nightwing sighed, and paused. "Don't argue about this with me, Mar'i, please." Starling was about to blow up at her dad but the use of her Tamaranian name made her think. Her dad was sincerely worried about her. Scared even.

"Fine." Starling said finally, "I'll go. Just be careful."

"Go straight home. Not to the bunker, not to cave, or the mansion. Go Home, Mar'i." Starling nodded and fired her grapple into the air looking back at her father as she shoot into the air, and away from him. Wishing she could be older, so she could help out.

_"So, what is going on with the joker?" _ Starling heard Nightwing ask in here ear. She had accidentally left her ear piece on. No harm really, she wanted to be at least able to know what was going on.

_"Harley just got back from her time with Waller. Joker's not too happy that she's been gone for so long. He tried to kill her, but she caught on to his plan. He's ripping through Gotham trying to find her now." Oracle answered. _Starling wasn't surprised. Oracle had her own ghost about the joker. All of them did. From Bruce down to Damian. All of them had felt The Joker's atrocities first hand. Starling had heard stories from Jason, and frankly the thought of meeting The Joker in the field scared her half to death. Starling was normally a brave girl. She would jump off of skyscrapers with nothing on her but her wit and knowledge on acrobatics. She fantasized about fighting Gotham A-list criminals, and sending them to Arkham. All except The Joker. The Joker who paralyzed Barbara. The Joker who tried to drive Commissioner Gordon insane. The Joker who killed Jason Todd all those years ago. Starling hated to admit it, but The Joker she feared, and rightfully so.

_"Bruce, is trying to find her before Joker does, but right now. Gotham is in such an upheaval, thanks to Joker, it's almost impossible." Oracle finished. _

Starling turned off her comm. Bruce told her fear was a good thing, it kept a person alert. And alert was something that Starling wasn't at the moment because she didn't even see the person running towards her from the roof adjacent to her till it was too late. Starling and the person landed with a thump in the alley below.

Starling rubbed her head where she had been hit. Who would jump off of a roof to hit her like that? When Starling opened her eyes she found a a groaning Harley Quinn laying next to her. O_h no... _Starling thought to herself. If Harley Quinn was here that meant The Joker wasn't too far off. She had to get out of here. Starling quickly stood up reached for her grapple, but Harley gripped her hand.

"I was hopin' for the Bats, but you'll do." She said in her thick Brooklyn accent. "Ya gotta help me. He's tryin'ta kill me!" Harley got up in Starling's face, "Please ya just gotta help me." Starling was torn. She had read Harley's file. Normally a sweet person, Stephanie mentioned this, Harley could turn rabid at the drop of a pin, even still it was because of The Joker she was this way. It was no secret that The Joker abused Harley for years, and this fact was in her file. Starling couldn't help, but pity the woman. Helping people was her job, but her father's orders rang in her ear. She had to go home tonight. Joker was running free and here she was lying on an alley ground with Harley Quinn the woman he was trying to kill. Luck wasn't on Starling's side today. Starling needed to get home, but could she really abandon Harley for The Joker to find.

She knew she couldn't. Nightwing would forgive her later. Starling pressed her ear piece, "Starling to Batman." She called out.

"Batman." The gruff voice answered.

"I've found Harley Quinn." Starling said quickly. She couldn't hear the surprise in Batman's voice but she knew he was.

_"I thought Nightwing ordered you to get off the streets."_ Was all the Dark knight said. Starling could hear gunfire behind her. It was coming closer.

"Long Story, and not one we have time for. I can't leave Harley with The Joker after her, you need to come and get her."

_"Give me your location."_ Batman ordered. More gunfire and explosions resounded behind Starling. Next there was a loud chaotic laugh.

"It's him!" Harley said in a panicked whispered. "He's coming!"

"Then we're getting out of here." Starling grabbed Harley's by the waste and fired her grapple into the air taking Harley with her. "Batman, Joker's close. Staying where we are is not really going to work out. What's your location? I'll have to bring Harley to you."

_"On 43rd close to the Iceberg."_ He answered, and Starling cursed.

"Sorry," She apologised for her language to her grandfather, "I'm on the complete other side of Gotham."

_"I'll meet you half way. I need you away from Quinn as soon as possible." Batman said. "Stay out of sight, but move quickly." _Starling didn't need to be told twice.

"Come on, Harley, we're getting you out of here." Starling said as they landed on the roof of the building.

"You're really going to help me?" Harley asked.

"The Joker is trying to kill you, right?" Starling asked. Of course, Harley nodded. "Then I'm going to help you. "

"And The Joker?" Harley asked.

"Batman and the rest will take care of him once we know you're safe. Don't worry, nothing's going to happen to you on my watch."

"You're a good kid. Batman and Nightwing must be proud." Harley said.

"Yeah, proud." Starling said grimly thinking back to her early conversation with Nightwing that week. "We've got to keep moving. We've got a good mile to go, and we've got to move fast and quietly. We can't have The Joker finding us before we get to Batman." Starling said. "You can free run across the tops of buildings, right?" Starling asked.

"Of course, I'm a high level gymnast, ya know. " Harley said proudly crossing her arms and sticking her nose in the air.

"Good. We've got ground to cover. Let's move." And the two took off. Luckily, Harley was wearing on of her darker outfits otherwise they might have been caught if she were wearing one of her louder ones. Also, Harley was competent enough to jump across the buildings. Starling was impressed not a lot of gymnast had talent in free running. This made things easier on Starling. Instead of having to check if Harley could keep up she could now look around for anyone that could catch them. That's when she noticed the chaotic laugh was now everywhere. Starling looked up in time to see a GCPD blimp coming there way. Starling grabbed Harley and threw her into the darkest corner of the roof, and out of sight, hiding there with her till the light passed over them. Then she heard the chilling laugh again. Starling looked up. The Joker had taken the GCPD blimp to look for Harley.

"Batman?" Starling said in her comm.

_"What is it? Did something happen?"_ He asked.

"Meeting you is going to be a lot harder than originally planned." She said a little shocked.

_"Why what happened?"_

"Joker took a GCPD blimp. He's also right above us. I don't think moving is an option, anymore." Starling said slightly worried.

_"Stay hidden. I'm still not close enough. It's going to be a while I'm sending Nightwing your way. I'm too far without the Batmobile."_ Starling groaned. Nightwing would be upset that she didn't go home, but lives were on the line. He would have to understand.

"Okay, I'm on the roof of the old court house. Hiding there."

_"I'll give the message to Nightwing. "_ Batman said. _"Oh and Starling be careful."_ The comment brought chills to Starling's spine. Batman was really worried. The Joker always liked to hide for months at a time and come out and ruin all of there lives, but not this time. No one was going to die tonight.

"Whatta we gonna do." Harley Quinn asked. "If Mistah Jay got the cops blimp, ya can't hide me for long, can ya?"

"Don't worry. Batman and Nightwing are on there way. We've just got to wait it out, Harley. Joker's not going to kill anyone tonight. If we stay here Joker won't find us. It's just a matter of time. "

"I'll trust ya, I hope the big man gets here soon because time's ticking." Harley said. Starling sighed. Time was ticking, and they didn't have long.

* * *

Nightwing should have known that Starling wasn't going to go home. Sitting out of a fight just wasn't in her personality. She always had to help, and be in the center of trouble. As much as Nightwing hated it. She was just like him when he was her age, and he hoped that what made him stop doing it wasn't the same thing that would happen to her. The memory of that night with Two Face still haunted him.

In the distance, Nightwing heard a wicked laugh and the familiar scream of Harley Quinn. Nightwing prayed he wouldn't be too late. On his glider, Nightwing rode the winds until he reached the courthouse, and what he saw wasn't good.

Starling was trying to fend off The Joker's goons when The Joker himself decided to join the fight. It only took one swift movement and Starling's head was trapped in The Joker's pale hands. He sneered something in her face which caused her to spit at him and struggle in his hold. The Joker only laughed, and from there everything moved in slow motion to Nightwing, like a movie, and like a movie no matter how hard he tried he couldn't change the the outcome of what happened next.

The Joker grinned at the girl, as Nightwing dove from his glider. He pulled Starling's face closer to his, Then gassed her with the fake flower sitting on his jacket front. Harley screamed and Nightwing blacked out.

When he came to the fighting was done and Batman was shaking him. "Nightwing! Nightwing!"

"What? huh? Batman?" Nightwing asked. "What's going on?"

Batman regarded Nightwing silently before nodding as if he understood something something.

"Batman?"

"I think I should be the one asking you what happened?" Batman supplied. That's when Nightwing took notice of the area around him. In his lap laid his daughter unconscious, but breathing. Nightwing could feel a wetness on his cheek. He had been crying, not only that his uniform was covered in blood, and it was not his own. Nightwing froze as bits of what happened came back to him.

In his faded memory was a flash of The Joker being thrown into the side wall of the roof next to the courthouse, and falling down till he landed on the fire escape below.

"Joker." Was all Nightwing said as he deposited the sleeping Starling into Batman's arms and ran over to the edge of the roof, and just like his memory there laid The Joker, beaten, bruised, bloody, and seriously injured. Before Nightwing could even speak Batman was down there examining The Joker.

"I did this." Nightwing concluded. "I don't even-" And that's when it all came back to him. The Starling getting gassed. The fighting off The Joker's goons. Easily taking them down almost too easily. Then fighting the Joker. Nightwing could feel the anger coming back. Joker had gotten Starling. The one thing he was trying to avoid seemed to happened. Irony truly hated his guts, but the only thing Nightwing could think about at the moment was the poor gassed Starling laying on the roof where Batman left her.

"He did something to her, didn't he? That's why you went crazy like this." Though it sounded like a question knowing it was coming from Batman's mouth, Nightwing knew it wasn't. The dark knight was right.

"He gassed her, Batman." was all Nightwing said.

"The Joker is going to need immediate medical, and Starling, too. We need to go." A small pat on the shoulder was the only comfort Batman gave the man. Nightwing nodded and lifted his daughter from the roof, and that's when she started to scream, not even scream, but screech so horribly that anyone around must have heard, and then she laughed. She laughed so hard that Starling started to gasp for air. Something was seriously wrong.

* * *

_"Mary Grayson" _A light voice called. _"Wake up, Mary." _

_"Maaaaarryyy!"_ Another voice whined._ "Mary, it's time to wake up." _

_"Princess Mar'i, you need to get up."_ At the mention of her formal title Mary's eyes shot open. She was tense as she looked around for the owners of the voices. She then realized she was currently in the Batcave. With a sigh, Mary calmed herself. It must have just been a bad dream only a bad dream.

_"This is more than a bad dream, Mary Grayson."_ A voice had answered her thoughts. Mary quickly turned to find three girls standing before three girls whom she did not know, in the Batcave of all places. They were each different in appearance but had on all white dresses that almost glowed in the dark of the Batcave

"Who are you?" Mary demanded, "And how did you get down here?" The three girls only giggled at Mary despite her giving them her best glare.

_"She wants to-" _

_"Know who-"_

_"We are." _The last one finished the sentence, after it had been broken up by the three of them_. "But she-"_

_"Hasn't met-" _

_"All of us..." _ On cue more girls dressed in white appeared out of nowhere. Long white dresses flowing as they danced around Mary sitting on the table. There had to be more than fifty girls in the room now all dancing around Mary. Singing and smiling at her.

_"It's Mary!" _One shouted happily.

_"Mary Grayson-"_

_"HAS COME TO PLAY!" _They all shouted in unison, and echo of their voices resounded through the cave in stereo

_"We've been waiting for you." _

_"For such a long time." _

_"A very, very long time." _

_"Mary Grayson." _

_"Mary Stella Grayson." _

_"Princess Mar'i Grayson ."_

_"Starling." _

The girls continued to chant her names in some sort of a mantra as they danced around her. Mary stared confused at the girls unsure of what was actually going on.

"You still haven't told me who you are. Who are you?" Mary demanded once again, but as before the dancing girls in white only giggled in response to her words. They did not seem to fear, but enjoy her presence. Yet oddly they stayed away from Mary never getting too close to touch her.

_"Who are we?"_ One repeated Mary's words.

_"We are everything." _Another answered simply.

_"And we are nothing" _With a more sinister tone behind her voice.

_"We are everywhere."_

_"But we are nowhere."_

_"WE ARE YOU, MARY." They all said at once. "WE ARE EVERY PART OF YOU!" _

"Me? What do you mean you are every part of me. Tell the truth! I want to leave! Where is my dad? Where is Bruce? Jason? Somebody other than you lot." Mary yelled. "This is crazy. I'm leaving!" Mary jumped off of the table she had been sitting on and began to walk towards the stairs.

_"NO!"_ They all shouted. _"IF YOU LEAVE YOU WILL DESTROY US!"_

_"You can't leave us, Mary." One started to cry. _

_"If you leave-" _

_"We will be-" _

_"Nothing." _

_"Nothing." _

_"Absolute nothing." _

"What do you mean?" Mary asked. "Explain." She ordered.

_"You have to stay with us."_

_"Because you are us." _

_"And we are you." _

_"We know everything that-" _

_"You want to know." _

"Everything that I want to know?." The girls all nodded in a chilling unison. "Where is my dad? Where is Bruce?" Again they all laughed this time harder than their last giggle.

"_Daddy's girl," _One scoffed at her

_"Little girl wants her daddy._

_"What a baby." _

_"All the things-" _

_"You could have-" _

_"asked for and-" _

_"You want to-" _

_"see your daddy?" _The last one giggled again and danced around Mary tauntingly._ "Awww." _

_"THE BABY MISSES HER DADDY!" _

"Stop it! I asked to know where my dad and Bruce are, not for you to mock me!" Mary scowled. "What is with all of you anyway? All this dancing and twirling around me is giving me a headache. Why don't you just quit it." Mary reached for the girl nearest to her, but she jerked away from her grip as if Mary were a leper. The girl looked at Mary with a scared expression.

_"YOU MUSTN'T TOUCH US!" _They all cried at once.

_"If you touch us-" _

_"We would have-" _

_"To destroy you."_ They all said seriously. So deathly seriously there was a deafening silence after the sentence. The weight of their words carried the silence. There was no more insistent chatter that was usually around with the odd spirit like girls. Before they seemed to never take anything serious, but now it was as if they were the most deadly creatures in the world. It was a threatening silence.

_"And we can't have that." _One of the girls broke the silence.

_"No." _

_"No, we can't." _

_"Absolutely not." _The chatter had returned with a vengeance and soon all of the girls had returned to random comments about how they couldn't destroy Mary for some reason, but then one stood out from the rest.

_"We have plans for you, Mary." _She said. Like the other girls she had long hair that hung limp down her shoulders and an almost eerily like white dress, that almost glowed in the darkness.

"Plans?" Mary echoed. "What plans? Tell me."

_"Now she asks the important questions!" _One said with a happy clap.

_"Yes!" _

_"Good job, Mary." _

_"Awesome job, Mary." _

_"You've hit the mark, Mary." _

"What mark? What are you talking about?" Mary asked.

_"You're asking the-" _

_"Right questions-" _

_"Now, Mary." _

"You have plans for me? Well, what are they? Why are you here?" _  
_

_"We are here-" _

_"Because of you-"_

_"Mary." _

_"Mary, you-" _

_"Created us." _

"Created you? What do you mean? I created you? I don't even know any of you!" Mary shouted, beyond frustrated with this whole thing.

_"You're not-" _

_"Paying attention-" _

_"Mary." _

_"Who did we say-" _

_"We were, Mary?" _

_"We said-" _

_"We were you." _

_"WE ARE EVERY PART OF YOU!" _

"I don't understand!" Mary cried. "How can you be apart of me?! How could I have created you?! I don't even know what's going on tell me, please!" The girls didn't laugh this time at Mary's distress instead they remained quiet only regarding Mary silently for a moment. None of them dance around Mary, or giggled and twirled. They didn't spin nor chatter with each other. They only stared at Mary. They stared at her as they circled around her, like a shark cornering it's prey.

_"You-"_

_"Shattered-" _

_"Us,-"_

_"Mary." _They spoke again. This time soft and without the crazed life they had before.

"Shattered you?" Mary whispered.

_"Yes, Mary." _

_"You Shattered-" _

_"US!"_ The softness of their words were gone and know the words came out in an angry fire. The closed in on Mary

"_We were-" _

_"One, but now-" _

_"We are many because-" _

_"of you,-"_

_"Mary Grayson!" _

_"_Because of me? I haven't shattered anyone! I don't even know how to shatter all of you. I don't know." Mary insisted,

_"Mary Grayson." One sneered. _

_"Mary Stella Grayson." _

_"Princess Mar'i of Tamaran_

_"Starling." _

They said her names at once making the words ring through Mary's ears harshly.

_"You are a very stupid girl." _

_"A dumb girl." _

_"A foolish girl." _

_Mary Grayson is a fool!"_

"Why are you taunting me? I told you it wasn't me who shattered you!" Mary cried.

_"But you did shatter us." _

_"Because Mary is a fool." _

_"You shattered us, Mary." _

_"Mary should learn to listen to her father." _

_"Listen to daddy-"_

_"Little Mary." _

_"Baby Mary doesn't-" _

_"Listen to-" _

_"Her daddy." _

_"That's why-" _

_"He always gets hurt."_

_"Because Mary doesn't-"_

_"LISTEN!" They all shouted at once. "NOW BECAUSE WE ARE MANY WE HAVE TO KEEP YOU FOREVER!" _

"What! NO! Listen to me I didn't shatter you, I swear! I can't stay here I have to go back to my dad and-" but the girl's in white cut her off as they began to speak again.

_"We have to-" _

_"Keep you-"_

_"Forever now,-" _

_"Mary." _

_"You will stay with us forever." _

_"And ever."_

_"And ever." _

_"And ever."_

_"And ever." _The girls continued to chant as the got closer and closer to Mary slowing drawing her in. Mary couldn't only stare wide eyed in panic, too scared to touch them after the earlier threat, and too scared to run for fear of them. She was trapped.

"ENOUGH!" A voice shout out. "Get out all of you! How dare you come here!" The voice was familiar to Mary, and when she turned it was a person Mary was glad to see. Someone who she knew would always be sane, and intellectual when she could not be. It was Damian coming to her rescue like he always did.

It seemed that Damian's presence was enough to force the girls away from Mary. As they backed up they hissed at Damian like angry cats, unwilling to part with their food, but retreated anyway.

"Leave now." He ordered. They slowly began to disappear one by one till only one was left. Unlike the others Mary knew this one. Her Blonde hair and blue eyes had lost the mirth that Mary usually saw in them. They were angry as they glared at Damian.

_"She will be undone." _Stephanie Brown said as she disappeared just like the rest leaving only Mary and Damian in the Batcave alone.

So happy to see someone making sense Mary hugged Damian who of course did not return the hug but did allow her to hold him with a reluctant sigh.

"Sorry, but I'm just glad to see someone sane." Mary said as she released him. "Damian, what's going on, and who were those girls? Was that really Stephanie?"

Damian looked down at Mary with surprised eyes, "You really have no idea what's going on, do you?"

Mary shook her head, "Of course not. How was I supposed to know what was going on with the babbling of over fifty girls that were all clearly insane?"

" Tt. Grayson, that wasn't actually Stephanie Brown, just like how I'm not Damian Wayne." Mary backed away from the impostor completely shocked. She had hugged this stranger. "Mini Grayson, where do you think we are right now?" It was odd. This impostor sounded and acted just like Damian. From the way he stood in that cocky lean, to his little verbal tics that Mary never actually figured out the meaning of. It could be a shape shifter, but the look in his eyes was all Damian. That was something she knew couldn't be faked.

"The Batcave." She answered sure of herself. "Even you can see that. Why are you asking me simple questions?"

"Because this isn't the Batcave, Mary." Not-Damian said. "We're not in the Batcave. We are in your mind, Grayson."

* * *

"What do you mean the antidote for Joker toxin isn't working. You're saying she's going to die, Bruce." Dick said. They has returned to the Batcave. Alfred was currently watching over the sedated Mary.

"She won't die." Bruce said sure of himself, "We'll find an answer, but the antidote was made for someone with a human biology, something that Mary doesn't have completely. We should count ourselves lucky this wasn't instantly fatal and Joker only used the gas that turns people insane."

"So, it's only driving her insane?"

"Sadly no. It seems that the toxin in a whole is deadly to her system. Though it is not necessarily toxic for Tamaranians or human, the mix of biology makes it so that it affects her different than how it would affect her mother or us. Unfortunately, this is also true for the antidote. She seems to be immune to the antidote. We're going to have to form a completely new antidote, one that works with her half human/half Tamaranian biology."

"Can you do it?" Dick asked.

"Honestly, I don't know what works in her system and what doesn't. It's going to a lot trial and error. Not to mention we're on a time crunch." Bruce answered.

"How long..." Was all Dick asked.

"I don't know, at most 5 hours, at least 1. Like I said I don't know how long, and I don't have the proper equipment here to see. We'll have to work with what we got." Bruce paused and looked Dick in the eye. "We are going to save her."

Dick nodded, "What do I need to do?" He asked determinedly.

"Call Tim, and Jason." Bruce answered as he started to get to work. "Tim's knowledge on chemistry and biology may come in handy, and Jason lived with Starfire for a long time. He might know something you don't about Tamaranian biology that might help us see if he can get a hold of Arsenal, too. Whatever help we can get, because we are going to need it. "

This was the countdown. The Countdown till Mary Grayson goes insane.

* * *

"Let me get this straight. This is my mind." Mary said, and Not-Damian nodded. "And you are not actually Damian, but a personification of my conscious that for some reason took the form of Damian" Not-Damian nodded again. "Bull! Why would I believe that!"

Damian rolled his eyes, "Because it's true, and you trust me."

"How do you know I trust you!?" Mary cried in outrage.

"I'm your conscience. I know what you're feeling." He said with raised eyebrows. Mary frowned even in her mind Damian was still a cocky jerk.

"Whatever. I must be really dumb if I made you my conscious. I mean isn't a conscience supposed to tell me what's right and wrong? Why would I pick you for that?"

"Because like you said, you are dumb. Now I'm no mood to explain to you about things happening subconsciously, but I am here to figure out how to save you."

"Save me? Do I look like I need saving. I'm fine." Mary said. Damian snorted.

"If you were fine you wouldn't be trapped in your mind. You remember the last thing that happened to, right?" Damian asked with a sigh.

"Yeah Joker was trying to kill Harley Quinn, but I found her on the streets before he could. He eventually found us, and he..." Mary suddenly remembered the depth of her situation. "He gassed me with Joker Toxin, didn't he?" Mary asked the rhetorical question. "But I'm not dead. At least I don't think I am. Then it must not be the toxin that kills people. So that means it's the one that drives people insane." Mary slowly realized. "I'm going insane." Damian only nodded at her realization. "Those girls... Stephanie..."

"Are the parts of your mind that are broken. Shattered into a million pieces. They are the personification of your madness."

"But I can't be going insane! You're talking to me right now! I'm sane I can form sentences that make sense, and I don't have homicidal tendencies. I can't be going insane."

"The fact that you are even hallucinating this means that you are." Damian said calmly letting Mary freak out before him.

"This is a hallucination?" She asked. "What am I saying? Of course it is, but you said we can save me. How can I save myself in a hallucination? This isn't real."

Damian smirked. "It doesn't have to be. A hallucination can be powerful. Powerful enough to save your sanity. So are you in,or are you going to give up?" Damian asked. Mary shook her head.

"I don't know the meaning of give up. My dad and Bruce probably sedated me and are trying to find a way to save me, so I can't disappoint and just wait to be rescued. I'm not a princess, at least not here on earth. That means I'm going to have to save myself. So how exactly do I save myself, Mind-Damian?"

"Firstly," Damian started. "Don't ever call me that again. It sounds like you're saying My Damian." Damian visibly shuddered. While Mary turned bright red. "We need to find out what exactly is creating the insanity, and put a stop to it. If we defeat whatever it is you might just wake up sane."

"That's all I need." Mary said grinning at Damian. "So how do we find whatever it is causing my insanity?"

"We're going to have to search. Come on." Damian grabbed Mary's arm and began to take her up the stairs and out of the Batcave, but Mary halted at the top of the stairs.

"Wait!" Damian raised an eyebrow at the girl. In that moment she could have sworn he looked exactly like Bruce. "Those girls...Stephanie said I couldn't leave. If I left I would destroy them,and myself." Damian rolled his eyes but still pacified the girl.

"They meant waking up. If you were to wake up you would die. Now come on. It's a big place and we've got a lot to look through." Damian pushed open the door and it was not Bruce's office like Mary had suspected it would be. It stead stood the manor with no ceilings or roofs . Only half gone with rooms in places they shouldn't be. The kitchen was upstairs, and the wine cellar stood in place of the office. Mary looked towards the sky which was a dark red with grey clouds that seemed to be stagnant.

"What happened to this place?" Mary found herself asking.

"Joker venom." Damian said quickly not dwelling on the question or the tarnished manor before them. "We need to move quickly. You don't have time to sightsee. Come on, we'll have to leave through the ceiling. Well, lack of a ceiling to get out of here. There isn't a door anymore." Damian reached into his utility belt and pulled out his grappling hook. For the first time, Mary realized that Damian had on his Robin uniform only without the domino mask. She honestly thought he wasn't wearing it because he hadn't been on patrol that night. Mary cursed herself in her head as she realized she wasn't in that place anymore. She was in her head. It was easy to forget that when Mind-Damian acted so much like her Damian in the outside world.

Mary nodded and pulled out her own grappling hook and shot it off toward the top, letting it pull herself too the top. That's when she remembered she had no roof to land on and grabbed a hold of the edge before falling.

"You should have waited for me to tell you what to do." Damian said with a deep chuckle. Mary looked over to find the boy in the large tree next to the manor.

Mary glared at him, "You know for something my mind conjured, you sure make fun of me a lot. You're so much like the real Damian. I would have thought I would have made you nicer towards me. Heck, I would have made you nicer towards everyone." Mary quickly flipped down to the ground with an intricate flip.

"Yeah, well you didn't." Damian jumped down from the tree. "We'll have to be stealthy and careful from here. Many of the inner workings of your mind aren't acting properly because of The Joker Venom." Unlike in the real world the downtown part of Gotham wasn't far from the manor. In fact it was soo close it was only meters away, but like the manor the City didn't look like the Gotham she knew. The streets were practically empty, and there was an eery silence about that Mary never heard before on the streets. There were cars in the road, but no people driving them. It was like someone had sucked the life out of Gotham.

"So how exactly do we go about finding the one who caused my insanity?" Mary asked as they jumped from roof top to roof top. Damian insisted that just walking down the road was too dangerous.

"The Joker venom infected a key part of your brain first, then from there it infected others through this key player. Most likely it will be personified by someone you know." Damian informed.

"So you're saying that-" Before Mary could finish the part of the roof underneath Damian disappeared with no more than a fading out of existence. "Damian!" Mary ran and grabbed the young vigilante before he could hit the ground and pulled him back up.

"Thanks," Damian muttered. "This isn't good we're running out of time. The area is becoming even more unstable. We need to move quickly." Mary nodded and followed Damian through the city. For the most part they came across nothing, only empty building and and empty streets, but the closer to the center of Gotham they got Mary got an uneasy feeling. The trip had been easy so far, but Mary wondered how long that will last.

Suddenly in the distance, Mary noticed something. Red hair, long red hair that curled. Red hair that Mary hadn't seen since she was 8.

"Damian, is that-"

"Get down!" Damian said in a hushed whisper, as he pulled her down to hide. "Be quiet. You don't what to do that." He insisted

"That is my mother! I haven't seen her in so long. I don't even know if she's alive. I have to go see her! I have to go talk to her!" Mary pleaded. Damian gripped her shoulder harshly.

"Get a grip. Remember none of this is real. That is not actually your mother. Here, she is the personification of your anger, your rage. She was one of the first to be infected. Meeting her would be dangerous. I don't care how much you miss your mother, but we have a job to do right now, and we are going to get it done."

Mary took a deep breath and calmed down, "You're right. I'm sorry." Mar apologized. "That gaps too big to jump, Damian. The real question is how we're going to get past her. With her powers( Which I'm assuming she has) It won't be easy. Her super hearing makes it almost impossible to be stealthy around her."

"I sneak around you all of the time." Damian argued. "Getting past her won't be that hard. Now can you hear heartbeats with your hearing because if she's just going to catch us that way we might have to think of a plan."

Mary thought for a second, "Yes, I can hear heartbeats, but it's like white noise to me at this point. I don't hear it unless I'm focusing on hearing it. It's even worse when I'm distracted. Do you think her being angry will be enough a distraction for us to get by? Different emotions in different quantities does affect her powers."

"It's going to have to work because we're going to have to get past her one way or another."

* * *

"Dick!" Tim called out to his sleeping elder brother "Dick!" but to no avail he did not wake up. "Oh, why do I even bother?"

Jason grinned sadistically, "Here let me, Replacement." Jason cleared his throat. "WAKE UP, DICK FACE! YOU'RE GOING TO MISS PATROL!" At that Dick almost leapt out of his seat.

"Wait! Tell Bruce I'm ready! Don't let him leave without me!" Dick cried as he got up from the chair and ran to the batmobile. He stopped a few feet short when he heard laughter coming from behind his back. "Jason, you know you're a complete ass, right?"

"I know." Jason gave Dick a shit eating grin, "And I relish in it." Tim rolled his eyes.

"Sorry, Dick. I shouldn't have let Jason wake you up, but you're phone's been ringing and we think it's important." Tim informed.

"Think it's important?" Dick repeated.

"It's your boss." Jason said tossing Dick his phone. "Be lucky that I didn't answer for you."

"Hahaha." Dick laughed sarcastically, "No." Dick called back the number on his phone. "Hello Commissioner?" Dick said when he heard the ringing stop.

_"Ah yes, Grayson. Good you called me back." _

"What can I do for you Commish at..." Dick looked at the clock. "Three in the morning." Slightly surprised that Commissioner Gordon called him so late, he wasn't even supposed to be on duty.

_"Son, it is important that I see you right this moment we have important things to discuss."_ Gordon sounded very urgent, but honestly Dick wasn't willing to go anywhere at the moment.

Dick looked towards the med bay where Mary laid still sedated, still with Joker Venom in her. "Commissioner, I don't know..."

"Go." Jason said from behind him. "Tim and I will watch her. You'll be gone for half an hour tops."

Tim nodded beside Jason, "He's right. If you don't go people might piece together that you're Nightwing after you put The Joker in intensive care because your sidekick got hurt."

"We can watch her here for a while. You'll be right back."

Dick mouthed a thank you to his brothers before returning to his phone conversation, "I'll be there soon, Commissioner Gordon." with that Dick hung up.

"If anything changes call me, and I'll turn around." Dick said as he grabbed his jacket.

Jason snorted, "As if you needed to tell us that. Go before you get fired or something." Dick grinned at Jason before running up the stairs out of the Batcave.

* * *

This was going to take all of the stealth training Mary had. The two quickly dropped down from the rooftops into the alley below behind an unsuspecting Starfire. It was almost as if she were looking for something- or someone as she searched wildly through the streets. Beside her Damian motioned they had to keep going as the Tamaranian was now distracted. Mary nodded and followed his lead.

The alley wasn't really an alley, as it was larger than the others in the city, it took skills to maneuver across it without alerting anyone let alone an alien with superior hearing, but it seemed as always things never go their way. Just like with Damian earlier on the roof the ground beneath Mary's left foot vanished leaving a gaping hole in its trace, and no matter how naturally graceful the girl was. Mary grayson stumbled, and as she did let a small squeak before catching herself.

Damian's response was instantaneous, "Shit!" He cried out as he grabbed Mary's hand and took off running with the girl in tow. Sadly, it seemed Queen Koriand'r was in the chasing mood.

"Damian we're not going to get very far!" Mary called to the boy who was dragging her.

"Yeah, well I don't want to get caught so..." Damian pulled a batarang out of his pocket and threw it at Starfire which exploded on impact with her face. It only seemed to make her angrier as instead of running after them on foot she finally took to the skies, landing in front of them cutting them off.

"Damian, we won't be able to take her in a fight." Mary whispered in his ear, "At least not for long."

"Then I'll hold her off, and you get away." Damian said under his breath.

"Heck no! I'm not leaving you!"

"Oh yes, you are! You still have to save yourself." Damian pointed out.

"Technically, you are part of myself. So leaving you at the hands of her counts as steps in the opposite direction."

"Really?" Damian hissed. "You're going to argue with me now!"

"It seems to be the only thing we're good at." Mary rolled her eyes. "Get ready. She's coming." On cue with an angry roar Starfire flew at them with Green eyes glowing in rage. When suddenly out of nowhere a smoke bomb was dropped and Mary was picked up and taken from her spot in the alley with Damian.

"Good, we got to you in time." Mary looked up to the person holding her was none other than Cassandra who was giving her a very relieved smile, and next to her was Tim who was setting down Damian

"Drake, Cain." Damian addressed them. "What are you-"

"Not every part of Mary's mind has gone insane yet. Just like you we're still kicking." Tim said pulling out his bow staff.

"And were not giving up without a fight." Cassandra agreed with a nod.

"We'll take care of Starfire." Tim said looking down into the alley where Starfire was having a fit searching for the missing teens. "And you two get out of here."

"You want us to leave you." Damian said sounding completely outraged by that idea. Next to him Mary whispered the word "hypocrite" but it went largely unnoticed. "I'm not leaving you. We'll take her together, and save Mary together."

Tim rolled his eyes, "Be logical, Damian. We're on a time crunch. We only have so long before it's all over and I'd rather not waste the time we have left by staying here. Cass and I have got this. Go." Beside Tim, Cassandra nodded her head.

Damian seemed to be weighing his options in his head, when Starfire let out another angry scream and a star bolt that decimated the building to their right.

"Fine." Damian ground out. "If we save Mary. It will save you, too. So, we'll go, just be careful. I don't want you getting hurt on my conscious"

"Please, it's going to be okay, Little D." Tim said using Damian's old childhood nickname, with a joking grin. Damian said nothing, but Mary could see his jaw clenching indicating that he was not happy with the current situation. It was moments like these that Damian looked so much like Bruce and acted so much like Bruce. Tim must have noticed it too, because he immediately sobered up his expression and turned away from the boy. Damian from there silently jumped down from the building on the other side away from Starfire. Mary moved to follow when Cassandra grasped her hand.

"Trust yourself." Was all she said before she let her niece go. Mary gave Cass a confused look as she followed Damian down the otherside of the building, and the two took off leaving Cassandra and Tim to fend off the rampaging alien on their own.

* * *

Dick got to the Commissioner's office and with a slight knock he entered the room. "You wanted to see me, sir."

Gordon who was sitting at his desk motioned Dick inside, "Come in and close the door behind you." Dick did as he was told, and entered the room. "This won't take much of your time, Dick. I know your daughter is sick at home right now." Dick froze. With wide eyes, he stared up at Jim Gordon. He hadn't told him that Mary was sick. Heck, he hadn't even told Babs. "Before you freak yourself out. Please read these first." Gordon handed Dick a manila envelope, who took it and read the inside contents.

"Sir!" Dick cried out shocked. "This is a letter stating my termination!" Dick looked up shocked at the man. "You're firing me! Why?"

"Dick, This is why I wanted to talk to you before I give these to you formally tomorrow." Gordon said gravely. "Dick, I know you're Nightwing." Dick's suspicions had been right. "I've known for a very long time."

"How long?" DIck asked when he found his voice.

"Since that first night Barbra snuck out of her window with you when you were Robin, and the reason I haven't turned you, Bruce or any of the others into the authorities is because I believe in what you do. " Gordon said. He paused waiting to see if Dick would intervene but when he didn't he continued. "And I don't what to destroy what you guys have built so far. Dick, what you did to Joker was what any father would have done if it had been done to their kid, and I don't fault you with that, but it's suspicious that your daughter would be injured and sick the same night as Starling. I don't want any paper trails leading back to your family. So, in order to protect your secret I'm firing you."

Dick was speechless. He was torn somewhere in between being broken up about being fired, and thankful that Gordon had kept their secret so long, and none of them even knew that he knew. He had hidden it so well, and to hide something from his family was a very impressive feat.

"Officially, you will be fired for your unexplained absences. Seeing as you have a lot of those it's very believeable and after you didn't show up for duty last night. I'll just pretend to have had my last straw with and have fired you. Easy cover story."

"Commissioner, I'm- I" Dick stumbled on his words.

"I know you're disappointed, kid. You've wanted to be a cop since you were in shorts and pixie boots, but you're doing something more. Something that can help more people, and I know that's what really matters to you. You were one of the best cops I've ever had under me, Dick. This isn't about you being a good cop or a bad cop but at the end of the day, you make a better vigilante. It would be wrong of me to be keeping you from what you're really supposed to be doing in life. You'll find something else to occupy your daytime life with, but being a cop is too risky with your nighttime activities. I hope you understand what I'm trying to say here, Dick."

Dick nodded. Gordon was right. In Blüdhaven, trying to juggle being a cop and Nightwing had been a little troublesome, and now that he had Mary to take care of all over that. He had to make some tough choices in life, and Gordon had taken it upon himself to make that choice for Dick. Dick sighed, maybe if Mary weren't waiting for him at home sick he would have been more upset. Maybe, he wouldn't be upset at all. The fact of the matter was that he had to accept the hand fate had thrown to him, and make it work.

"Thank you, Commissioner Gordon. You've been an awesome boss." Dick stood up and shook the man's hand before walking towards the door to leave. "Oh and, sir. I think that you should know. That you have always been apart of our family. Since the beginning, before even me. It seems that you've always been taking care of us, Commish." Flashing a grin towards Gordon. Dick left the police station no longer part of the police force.

* * *

They had ran for a while before Damian got tired enough for them to stop.

"I didn't know I could get tired in a freaking hallucination." Mary said in between gasps. Mary thought to what they had just run from and frowned. "I thought we we're in the downtown area?" Mary asked looking around her surroundings.

Damian glared at the girl, "Of course we're downtown. Where else would we- Oh." It seemed that Mary's mind had taken another turn for the worse. Now instead of the area around them disappearing as it did before. It now changed randomly. They were no longer in the city like they just had been. They were in a place Mary knew very well. A place she had gone every summer since coming to live with her dad.

"This is Haly's circus. This is the big top, but why here?" Mary asked herself. Then as if in response the big top came to life. It was no longer empty and absent of life. Now it was filled with people.

"Get down!" Damian hissed as he pulled her down behind some barrels. It seemed he was doing that a lot lately.

"Damian, what is this?"

"Shut up and watch." He shushed her. "We might learn something that could help us." Mary did as Damian told her and began surveying the area around them when she spotted someone familiar sitting in the crowd.

"Oh no." Mary could almost feel the blood draining from her face. "Damian, Bruce is here. He looks so young...too young." Damian looked over into the crowd and found a very young looking Bruce Wayne sitting in the audience. He had to be about 25 the way he was looking, but then again it seemed that Bruce hardly aged, so she could be wrong. That's when she saw a young boy tights and a leotard run into the big top. The black hair and blue eyes gave away to who he actually was, her father. "I think this is the day The Flying Graysons died, but this isn't in my memories. I wasn't born yet. This shouldn't even be in my head."

"Yes, but it's been described to you. You're mind can recreate it in here."

"But..." Mary looked towards the young version of her father. Then towards the couple who would have been her grandparents had they had not died that fateful day, and she saw it happening. She saw the rope snap, and the the blood curdling scream coming from the boy who would be her father if this continued on, and the terrified faces of the Graysons as they began to descend towards the ground. She couldn't let this go on. She wouldn't let this go on. Before Damian could stop Mary stood up and ran towards the center of the ring.

"STOP!" she cried, and to her command everything did. Slowly the people in the crowd began to disappear one by one, even Bruce, even Jonathan and Mary Grayson. Soon the big top returned to how it was when Damian and Mary found themselves suddenly in Haly's circus, except one thing. The nine year old Dick Grayson was still there. "Dad..." Mary whispered. She moved silently towards where he was stood, but he jerked back in fear and took off in the opposite direction.

"Wait!" Mary began to run towards the boy version of her father, but Damian retrained her.

"Don't he's not stable. He's been affected by whatever is causing you to go insane." He told her.

"Just like my mom." Mary stated.

Damian nodded, "Just like Starfire."

Mary shivered from what she just saw, from what she just felt. "I've never seen my father so scared before. He's usually so..." Mary drifted off looking towards the direction where the young Dick had run off, "He was scared... Fear..." Then it all seemed to make since to her everything that was happening. "Damian, I know what part of mind is causing me to go mad!" She grabbed him excitedly, "I can't believe I didn't see it before! I must be stupid."

"What is it? What?" He asked her confused.

"Damian, it's fear. Fear is what's causing me to go mad!" Comprehension came to Damian's face.

"So, what's your biggest fear?" Damian asked.

Mary could feel her heart clench, "It's not a what, but a who, and I know exactly where to find her."

* * *

Dick Grayson left the police station unsure of really how to feel, but knowing that he had to get home to check on Mary. Bruce hadn't called him, which meant nothing had changed from when he left. He was still trying combinations of chemicals, and they still weren't working that's what Bruce not calling him meant. Dick sighed, as he walked down the street towards the parking garage, when he saw something familiar in the corner of his eye.

He had to give her credit. He almost didn't notice her. She looked so normal, her hair was blonde again, and it was down flowing to her mid chest, the glasses also made her look normal, but Dick would know her anywhere. She was almost too pretty not to notice wherever she went. It was Harley Quinn walking down the street across from him. She was in normal clothes, not even in anything revealing like she normally wore when she wasn't her villain outfits. Civies almost suited her better.

Dick didn't hesitate to find a place to change into his Nightwing persona and less than five minutes later he spirited Harley off of the streets and on to the top of a building where prying eyes couldn't watch them.

"N-N-Nightwing! I haven't done nothing! Please let me go!" She said scared, maybe it was the fact that he had her hanging of the side of the building and not actually on it that was making her scared. Still, Nightwing's patience was long gone for that night, and he needed Harley for answers, and he was getting them now.

"Joker Venom, I need answers to find an antidote. Now." Nightwing growled leaving no room for argument. Harley looked up at Nightwing with a confused expression.

"Ya mean that the old antidote isn't working." Harley's face visibly paled, "Your little girl that was trying to help me...She got gassed, didn't she?" Nightwing didn't say anything only nodded in response to her question. "That's not good. Listen, I'm gonna try and help you." Harley said. Nightwing narrowed his eyes.

"What's the catch?" He asked knowing this game like the back of his hand.

"Nothing, you just let me disappear. I won't cause trouble anywhere ever again. I swear." There was a tone in harley's voice that made Nightwing almost worry about her.

"Harley, what happened during that last Suicide Squad mission?" He asked it wasn't like Harley to just try to up and leave.

Harley chuckled a little, but not in a happy way, "Let's just say I've been scared good. Now ya gonna let me up so we can save that little girl of your's or what?" Nightwing pulled her up from where she was hanging over the edge of the building.

"So how are you going to save Starling?" Nightwing asked. Harley shook her head.

"Not me. The only person who can save her now is Poison Ivy. We're going to have to take her to Ivy. Can someone one bring her over to Toxic Acres?" Harley asked.

"I'll call Batman." At this Harley visibly paled unsure of how the dark knight would react to her presence. "He'll bring her over. Now let's go, and if you double cross me..." NIghtwing let the threat hang there.

"I got it! I'm as good as back with Waller. Don't worry, I used to be a doctor you know. I haven't lost a patient yet."

By the time Batman got to Toxic Acres, Nightwing with a gas mask on stood holding a Harley Quinn with blonde hair and civies on. Just in case this was a trap Batman brought along the Red Hood and Red Robin with him. Really, he only needed one to help bring Starling over, but you could never be too careful with the criminally insane. With gas masks on, all three got out of the batmobile, Hood holding onto the still sedated Starling. Nightwing was shocked at how much her appearance changed since he last saw her less than an hour ago. She was visibly a lot paler, which worried Nightwing since she didn't not inherit all of his complexion. She was usually a nice mix between his and Kory's. Not too pale, but not orange like Kory's. Mary just looked like she had a permanent tan 24/7. So when that tanned complexion disappeared Nightwing knew it was getting worse. Not only was she pale, but she was sweating as if she had a fever, but when he got close enough to touch her. Her skin was cold almost too cold. It was as if her whole system was breaking down. They didn't have much time.

Harley gulped as she saw the three come towards her with the child but she choose not to show her fear as she knocked the door to Poison Ivy's house.

"Harley is that-" Ivy opened the door was the Batman and tried to close the door in Harley's face, but Herley put her foot out stopping it from completely closing.

"Wait Pamela! I swear it's not what you think!" Harley cried as she tried to force open the door.

"What? So, you're not selling me out to Batman?" Poison Ivy asked sarcastically. "Please, who do you take me for."

"Ivy," Nightwing called out. "We only came for help."

"Why the hell would I help you?" She asked still trying to close the door.

"Please, Pam, She's dying. You wouldn't let a kid die, would'cha?" at Harley's words Ivy finally opened the door all the way.

"Kid?" she asked. Then she say Starling laying in Hood's arms. "Come inside. I'll help." Nightwing let out a breath he didn't know he was holding.

"Really?" He asked.

"Really. Now get inside, set her on the couch. I'm going to help her."

"What's the catch?" Red Robin asked.

"No catch." Ivy answered as she started pulling chemicals from her cabinets. "I owe her one. This is me paying a debt I owe."

"What debt?" Red Hood asked standing over Starling whom he just set on the couch.

"Early this week, she let me go when I was terrorizing some construction workers who were cutting down some trees." Ivy informed. "Right in front of Nightwing, too. I figured she would get in trouble for that, so I owe her one. If I can save her life we'll be even." Batman raised an eyebrow at Nightwing but said nothing. "Now, do you have a list of things you've already tried on her?" Ivy asked. Batman silently handed her some papers to Ivy who studied them carefully. " I was afraid of this."

"What?" Nightwing asked worried.

"You've tried practically everything I have with me here, but I think I have something that just might work." Ivy pulled a syringe from her bag.

"But, Red, That's-"

"I know, but I owe her." Poison Ivy told Harley, "This is what makes Harley and I immune to all toxins and poisons." Ivy told Batman and the others. "If this works she won't have to worry about ever being poisoned again, if not then we should be worried that The Joker has a poison that has no antidote. You did say he changed his formula, right?"

Nightwing, Red Hood, and Red Robin looked towards each other, "Yeah, sure." They all said at the same time. No point in telling Ivy the truth.

Ivy nodded, and administered the compound to Starling. "It's all up to her now. If she's going to survive this, she's on her own for now. We've done all we can."

* * *

"I tried to ignore it, but she seems to always put up the hardest fight for my attention." Mary told Damian. They know stood outside a place Mary swore to herself she would never go again. The Royal Manor. She hated the place now, and all good memories she had there were tarnished by the fact that the whole family had used her and controlled her. The only truly innocent person that lived in this house was three year old, Roy Royal, who was poisoned by his sister that fateful day. Mary hated this place, but this place however was not the root to all of her fears. The root of all of her fears was Alicia Royal.

"You never told me that you were still afraid of her." Damian stated staring at the manor, which had been the only thing truly intact in the whole city.

"I never told anyone." Mary shivered as she held herself. "Alicia Royal used me in ways that no one could ever understand. For weeks I was under her complete control. I was under her mercy, and no one knew. No one noticed to save me till it was almost too late. She could have had me kill all of you from the beginning, and I would have been powerless to stop it. Hell, she made me even think that I would have enjoyed it. Alicia made me love her and hate her and fear her all at the same time. Alicia Royal almost destroyed me, but you and Kevin didn't let that happen. I had already caused so much trouble that when it was all done with and over I couldn't tell anyone that I was still shattered inside. So I picked up my own pieces and glued myself back together just like you and Jason and Bruce and Tim and all the others would have done. I fixed myself all on my own, but I guess as you can see, I left some cracks." Mary chuckled a little, "If you were the real Damian there was no way I would have ever told you all of that, X'hal herself could have begged, but I never would have done it."

Damian flashed her a ghost of a smirk, "And the real Damian would have berated you for being weak, but I'm not the real Damian, am I?"

Mary turned to him, "No, but you're so much like him in so many ways, and so different." She told him, "You have his mean streak, and bossy attitude, but you don't have his inflated ego and arrogance, but you do have that weird trait of his to know when I'm not okay. All in all, I think I perfected Damian in my head. It's a pity that you don't actually act this outside if it though."

"I think I'm toning down with age." Damian paused, "This is it. After this, you will wake up and all of this would have just been a nightmare."

"Kind of a fun nightmare, though. Don't wanna do it again, but It was kind of fun." Mary took a deep breath. "I'm ready to do this." Mary walked up to the front door of Royal Manor and opened the door. Sitting inside at the dinner table, bodies of her family members all laying around her was Alicia Royal. And Mary felt her blood run cold. No matter how much she believed she was, nothing could have ever made her ready to face Alicia Royal again. Nothing.

"Mary Stella! You're here! That Brown girl and those furies must have given you my invitation!" She chirped. Alicia looked exactly like Mary remembered her, but of course she would this wasn't the real world, this was only her thing was the same from the length of her pale blonde hair, to the ever present headband holding it back, to the pearl necklace around her neck. Even still the fact that nothing about Alicia Royal changed seemed to unnerve Mary even more. It was as if Alica Royal was a constant red stain in Mary's life, no that would never let her forget it was there.

"Alicia Royal, Release the hold you have over my mind! I want you out of my head!" Mary yelled at the girl, but Alicia only sipped the water in the crystal glass in front of her.

"Now why would I do that?" Alicia asked, "Mary, you should know that you are the eternal obsession in my life. I want nothing more to be your friend, and to have you in my life forever."

"Alicia, I've heard it all before, and only now do I really know what you're saying. You don't want to be friends with me! You want to own me, like one of your prized riding horses. To you, I would have been an attack dog on your leash waiting on your every command. I will never let you control me ever again."

Alicia laughed, "I don't think you understand, Sweet Mary. I've always controlled you, and I always will." With a wave of her dainty hand Mary was pulled forward by some invisible force, making her sit at the table with the remains of Alicia's family.

"Mary!" Damian shouted as he threw a couple of batarangs at Alicia who only held up a hand to stop them. Alicia frowned at him.

"I don't remember ever inviting a Wayne to dinner." Alicia snapped and Damian fell to his knees groaning in pain.

"No! Damian!" Mary ran out of the chair when Alicia was distracted and to Damian's side. He groaned as he looked up at her.

"I'll be fi-" He tried to comfort Mary telling her that he was fine but when he raised his hand he found it transparent, and slowly disappearing from his sight. "It's going to be okay." He told Mary unsure of what really else to say.

"No it's not. We were supposed to save me. The both of us! I can't do this alone."

Damian tried to grip her shoulders but found that his hand passed through, "Yes, you can and you will. You said it yourself. Last time you picked up all of the pieces on your own. You can do it again."

"And what if I can't?" Mary asked unsure of herself.

"I have faith in you, Small Grayson. Have some faith in yourself. You know what's right. You know what to do. This is your mind. Don't let that small blonde sociopath tell you what to do." Damian began to flicker from Mary's sight.

"No!"

"Don't worry about me, and go kick her ass." With those final words Damian, the personification of Mary's conscious disappeared, and Mary had a feeling he wouldn't be coming back to save her. No one was coming to save her this time. She was going to have to save herself. There was no Damian to catch her from falling, No Johnny and Ella to back her up. No Oracle to tell her what to do in her ear piece. It was only Mary. Mary was going to have to save herself.

"Alicia Royal, You've made a very big mistake." Mary told the girl standing from her spot on the ground.

"What?" Alicia rolled her eyes, "I made you mad?"

"No. You made me fight for myself once!" Before Alicia could react Mary was on her and gave her nice uppercut without warning. Alicia not really a fighter was no match for Mary in hand to hand combat. "You're not actually real!" Mary said as she punched Alicia in the nose, "So, I don't have to hold back on you in my own mind. Because the real Alicia Royal is somewhere preparing for our rematch, and let me tell you I can't wait to take down the real thing." Mary kicked Alicia in the stomach sending her flying into the wall behind her, "Because you are a sad imitation." Alicia Royal no longer looked like the classic rich girl she was. Her head band was broken her eye swollen and blood poured from her nose. She stood there against the wall wheezing, clutching her chest, Mary must a have broken a rib or two. "I will never ever fear you again, Alicia Royal."

Alicia turned to Mary so quick Mary almost jumped in a startled fright. Next thing Mary knew she was sent flying, crashing into the large dining room table landing on top of the corpse of the young Roy Royal. "I AM FEAR!" Alicia Roared at Mary, "You can not kill fear!. I will always be here in your mind! I will always be in the very pit of your soul! And this is my mind now Mary Grayson! In here I am a goddess! I control everything!" The bodies of the dead Royal family around Mary suddenly became animated, and they all tried to latch themselves onto to Mary. "In this mind. I control everything, I control you! You can't defeat me.

"I will!" Mary cried as she fought off the deceased Royal family. "This is my mind, and I will get it back! I will save myself, and I will never be a victim ever again! I know that this is my mind, and it will never be your's Royal! Never." Mary swore. She suddenly remembered Damian's last words to her. This was her mind, and she was in her control of it. She had always been in control of it. She just let fear take over when she got too scared.

"This is my world! And you belong to me!" The invisible force that had flew Mary into the table was currently holding her up in the hair where a very angry Alicia Royal looked up at her from the ground.

"I don't belong to anyone, and this is my mind and I'm taking it back!" Suddenly, the invisible force holding Mary released her dropping her to the ground below.

"What is this!?" Alicia shoted confused. Alicia Royal suddenly began to shrink in size, becoming the size of a small doll.

"Bruce always tells me that fear is a good thing." Mary said standing up. "It keeps you sharp, but you should never let it control you. So I want you to know, Alicia Royal or should I call you Fear, that you don't control me anymore. I could destroy you, and conquer my fears, but then I think I would miss it for all the good you do. Fear is only bad when you let it consume you. I won't let it happen again. Goodbye, Fear, and don't forget to stay in your place." A little cage appeared, and Mary walked over and picked up the doll sized Alicia Royal and threw her inside the tiny cage.

"You should have destroyed me! I guess you're just that stupid! How do you know that I won't rise again and take over. How do you know fear won't control you again."

Mary rolled her eyes, "And you're calling me the stupid one. I know because I won't let this one happen again. I've learned a lot of lessons today, not just this one. Goodbye, Insanity. Hello, Peace of mind!" The Royal Manor around them dissipated and the run down Gotham City was returned to how it looked normally. It was bright, like on one of those rare sunny days. Mary Grayson was sane once more. And with that she woke up from this very long nightmare.

* * *

When Mary had woken up, she was greeted with the sight of Damian who she pulled into a hug on sight. Of course, when he forced his way out of her hold. He yelled at her the question of why she felt the need to hug him all of a sudden. Mary paused, then replied she honestly couldn't remember, but felt she just had to hug him for some reason.

When Damian woke Dick up to tell him that Mary was awake. Damian doesn't know of another instant when Dick looked so relieved it was as if the weight of the world had been lifted from his shoulder. He was the first on Mary asking "how she felt" and if she was really, "okay". Bruce ordered Mary to take bed rest for the next couple of days and boy did for those day did Dick hover. Mary didn't know her dad was such a worrier, but when she asked about. Jason just laughed and responded that Dick had always been the mother hen in group, right after Alfred.

During these days that Mary was confined to bed rest, Dick finally told the family that he had been fired from his police job stating the "official" reason for his termination then the actual one. He figured that maybe the whole family didn't need to know that Commissioner Gordon actually knew their secret just yet. He wanted to see Barbara's face when her dad finally reveals that he's known the whole time. Also during this time, Dick not liking his current state of unemployment bought a gymnastics gym that the owner was selling and didn't care too much for. Mary loved the idea, and that day the Grayson Gym was born. The coaches already there teaching, we're happy that they were at least staying open, but were originally wary of Dick... Till a Mary who was not supposed to leave the manor came out of no where and began working the uneven bars better one of the coaches. Mary got yelled at of course, but the small act of disobedience helped the coaches realize that the person who was now their boss, wasn't just some rich boy who had made gymnastics his latest interest, but that he was an aerialist himself. Dick now teaches the most advanced classes at the Grayson Gym, while his daughter Mary worked with the 3-5 year olds. Apparently being a kid helped made the little kids more comfortable to learn a lot of the things Mary had to teach to them.

Nightwing never had a problem with Starling not listening to orders again. It seemed the whole incident with the Joker helped her realize that her dad told her to do things it was for a reason. It wasn't like she made a habit of a habit of disobeying him... Who was Dick kidding him, anything Major he had told Mary to do she would always go around him ad do it anyway, but she had no problem with Bruce or Jason. According to Alfred both Jason and Dick had issues listening to Bruce when they were younger, but listened to Alfred fine. Alfred said it something about being the parent that made their child not want to listen to them. Still after the Mary had woken up she had listened to his orders more then she did before. She also never pulled anything like she did with poison Ivy again.

Finally Nightwing and Starling had achieved something that not many partners get in their life time. That's why when that late Wednesday night in the gym when Dick had heard the squeal of police sirens and the shooting of a gun he didn't have to look to know that Starling was right behind him, as they flew through the City on wires. This was their time.

It was the age of Nightwing and Starling.

_The End._

* * *

_Final word count: 13, 584(I'm actually pleased with the length for once) _

_Hello, hello, hello my favorite lovlies. Miyu k. has returned! I'll admit last chapter sucked, but I liked this one a lot better. I actually had so many more scenes I wanted to add. Mary was actually supposed to see her dead uncle Ryand'r, and talk to him. Selena was supposed to make an appearance, and Insane tiny Dick Grayson was going to fight his daughter Mind-Damian was supposed to go insane and many more. I ended up nixing all of these ideas during the writing process, some for times sake other because they were just bad ideas. All in all, this has been my favorite chapter to date. This one definitely became the easiest to write. I actually wrote most of it today. what takes me so long in between chapters is that it's hard finding a good time to write. I do need my sleep, but I write whenever I can. Also this chapter was based of the play, The Insanity of Mary Girard, if you've ever seen the beginning of the chapter is a little homage to it._

_Now onto info you actually care about. _

_Don't freak out. This is not my last chapter the arc is just ending. This is the last chapter for the Nightwing &amp; Starling title. Mary's is now 11 years old, and I have other plans for her. Nightwing is still her mentor, and will be on some missions with her, but it's time for Mar'i to spread her wings a little. _

_Thanks always to my awesome reviewers, Victory Goddess, you are the wind beneath my wings and the light onto my path. _

_MASSHERO-95: Thanks for the tip. You helped me fix some of the stuff I was working, I'm working on trying to get Mary to sound like a kid. In my head she does, because this is how the ten and eleven year olds around me act and talk, but that may not be the norm. _

_And thank you 21 is awesome, You are awesome! _

_I will see you guys in the next arc, and chapter. _

**_Gotham's Best: An Eye for an Eye. _**

_Any questions/comments/concerns? Feel free to review! I adore constructive criticism! please leave me some tips!_

_Love, _

_ ~Miyu K. Nov 30, 2014_


	12. Gotham's Best 1

_**An Eye for an Eye**_

Stephanie Brown knew when that her time as Batgirl was coming to an end. It had been a long, and fun five years and like Barbara, Stephanie knew that change was coming. Five years... A longer time as Batgirl then Cassandra, and almost as long as Barbara's run. Stephanie Brown was not stupid, she knew that her time as Batgirl was coming to an end, and she didn't mind in the least. Stephanie Brown knew in the pit of her stomach that there was something greater then being Batgirl waiting for her. She knew there was something coming that would help more people than Batgirl ever could. Still, Gotham needed a Batgirl. Batman and Robin needed a Batgirl. So she just couldn't leave... at least not without someone to take her place, and so Stephanie Brown searched for the next Batgirl.

* * *

After the event with the Joker and Harley Quinn, Mary Grayson was still not back in the field. It wasn't her father, or Bruce, or really anyone who kept her from going back in as Starling, but herself. Something was different. She was different, and until she knew exactly where she stood now, Mary avoided going back into the field. Of course, this didn't make her happy either.

Like her father, Mary was never truly happy unless she was helping people, and just going to school, dance and the gym didn't make her feel happy. Sure, for once she felt normal, but Mary Grayson was never normal. Mar'i Grayson wasn't even born normal. Three years ago, almost four, Mar'i was a princess. Living on Tamaran, the planet she was born on, with her mother, who loved her very much. Then Princess Mar'i didn't even know her father, and now Mar'i couldn't imagine her life without him. With the family she lost and left on Tamaran, Mar'i gained a new one, one that was larger and crazier than she could have hoped for. And with that new family came a new Mary. Starling was born, and Mary loved every minute of it. It was like her mother's stories, and much much more. Mary was no longer, that 8 year old Princess that was trying to adjust to the new planet. She was no longer that Princess of Tamaran. Mary was now a vigilante of Gotham. Mary flew higher then any dancer and gymnast could ever hope, while helping the world around her. It was a win-win situation, so why did Mary feel so out of touch?

Mary helped the others from the computer, but that paled in comparison to actually being out there. Barbara had told her this before she was Starling, and now she knew Babs was right, as always. The state of melancholy seemed to do nothing but infuriate Mary. Something was off about her, but she just couldn't figure it out.

Mary sighed as she walked into the manor that day. Dance had finished early, with Kevin promising that next week's competition was as good as theirs, and Mary had a night off from Grayson Gym leading her to want to check up on Alfred, Bruce, and Damian. It seemed that Mary was the only one who liked to check up on the manor and it's inhabitants on a weekly schedule. Even though they all lived in the same city(Excluding Cassandra), they could go weeks without even speaking to one another. Tim was famous for this, and to a slightly less extent so was Jason. Stephanie made sure to see at least Mary or Dick once a week if she could, and all bets were off if Bruce wasn't in Gotham and had a large case to work on. Right after Mary had moved to Gotham from Blüdhaven, Bruce went on a mission for a full two months alone, and the only person he checked in with was Alfred. All in all, it seemed that Mary was the only who really felt the need to check in with her family. Babs had said that she was only checking in on the stability of her family after the family she knew on Tamaran had fallen apart. Mary really never felt the need to psychoanalyze her life choices. Checking in on her family made her happy, and it made Alfred happy, so that was enough.

"Ah Miss Mary, I see you've come to the Manor for a visit. Slightly early, aren't you?" The butler asked her with slightly raised eyebrows.

"I didn't have to teach a class at the gym tonight, so I thought about coming over for dinner. Is that okay? I'm not disrupting anything, am I?" Mary said. Usually, Mary only came after dance lessons and working at the gym.

"No, I don't believe so." Alfred let Mary inside and led her to the kitchen, where he was currently making dinner. They engaged in some small talk that Alfred enjoyed as he rarely got it with anyone else in the house, when Mary heard faint voices coming from upstairs.

"Alfred, Bruce is home?" Mary asked recognizing one of the voices she heard. Alfred stopped cooking.

"Yes, it surprised me, too. Master Bruce came home early tonight. I believe Master Damian got into some trouble at school today, and his presence seemed to have been needed." Mary blinked in confusion. The school hadn't actually needed to call her from class when Damian got in trouble for once. It was no secret of their relations at school, so when Damian got in trouble Mary was called in to see the likelihood of getting ahold of his father that day, and vise versa. Damian getting in trouble also meant that he and Bruce would be getting into one of their typical arguments right about now. The issues they were having still never seemed to have been resolved all they way from back when Alicia Royal made her debut. It seemed the older Damian got, the more the two fought. Mary never really understood it. Sure, she had gotten into fights with her father, but never one spanning months of grudge holding, only speaking to each other when work called for it. It was when they fought that Mary and the others often realized how alike Bruce and Damian were. They were very alike in anger, and they ways they showed it.

As Mary kept listening she noticed that she knew the two other voices upstairs talking with Bruce. One was female in tone easily identified as Stephanie's, and the other... The other was her father's.

"My dad's here?" Mary asked standing up from her place at the kitchen bar. "He's supposed to be at work, working on getting that trapeze built for the gym. What's he doing here?" Alfred only returned Mary's look.

"I thought you knew he was here, Miss Mary, others I would have mentioned it." Alfred said with a frown.

Mary waved off his apology, "It's not a problem...Just give me a moment." Mary walked out of the kitchen and up the stairs. As she did she got a clear notion of what they were talking about. Thank X'hal for superior hearing. Mary could hear words like "Batgirl", "Robin", and "Starling". Her father arguing with whatever point was made, and Bruce's calm interception of the conversation. She had to get closer she had to see what was going on inside. It didn't take long for her to find the vent leading to the room, but waiting for her at the end of the vent was something she wasn't expecting.

"Damian." She said in a barely audible whisper. "What are you doing here?"

He shushed her as quietly as he could. "Same as you." He told her looking back towards the office. "They're talking about us." If they didn't have to be quite right then, she would have snorted.

"Of course they're talking about you. You got in trouble at school again." Mary pointed out in a hushed whisper. Damian rolled his eyes.

"I said us, moron. Now shut up, and listen." He ordered. Mary didn't bother arguing with him. They would get into so much more trouble for spying if they actually got caught. So, she quietly listened in on the their conversation.

"Retire?" Dick said with a slight gasp. "You want to retire from being Batgirl?" Dick asked the blonde shocked. Mary would have gasped had Damian not put a hand over her mouth. A lot of good that would have done after they had a full whispered conversation though.

"Yes, retire. Dick, it's time for a change." Stephanie said.

"You've done so much good as Batgirl, though." Dick pleaded. "You can't want to stop that."

Stephanie sighed, "I don't want to stop that, but I think my time as Batgirl is coming to an end." Stephanie said finally.

"Stephanie." Dick pleaded again

"You think it's time for someone else to step up as Batgirl." Bruce cut in calmly.

Dick and Stephanie turned towards Bruce, both stayed silent for a minute. "Yes," Stephanie finally answered.

"You shouldn't grieve her so much." Bruce turned to Dick. "If I remember not too long ago a young man grew out of his title and wanted to move towards bigger and better things."

Dick narrowed his eyes at Bruce, "Yeah, I outgrew being Robin, but this is different Batman. Stephanie doesn't want to leave her mentor's shadow. And If I remember correctly there was more to me leaving Robin then just wanting to grow up and move on."

Stephanie sighed bringing attention back to her. "Let's not bring up arguments from before Tim was in the picture, because that's going too far back down memory lane for this discussion. Yes, I want to retire from being Batgirl, but I was going to wait until a suitable replacement to come up." Stephanie announced. "With Batman all over the place Robin is going to need another partner for when you're gone Bruce.

"You want to endanger another teen's life?" Dick asked with eyebrows raised. "I think we have enough of those, thank you."

Stephanie shook her head, "No. What I really meant was when the suitable replacement is old enough to be Batgirl." There was an awkward silence that followed Stephanie's words.

"You mean Mary." Bruce said voicing Dick's thoughts.

"Yes."

"And no." Dick cut through. "She's supposed to me my partner."

"In a few years she may not want to be anymore. Besides, with your new League duties, you won't have much time for Gotham any more either." Stephanie said staring Dick down. He didn't back down from her challenge though and glared right back at her.

"Why don't we ask Mary herself." Bruce suggested. The two reluctantly stopped glaring at one another and faced towards the vent, looking straight at Damian and Mary inside. "You two can come out now."

"We know you're there." Stephanie said crossing her arms.

"Damian, you're not as quiet as you think." Dick said. Slowly the cover of the vent popped out of place and the two kids slowly jumped down into the office.

"This isn't what it looks like." Mary said holding her hands up in a typical surrender position. While Damian tucked his hands into his pants pocket and huffed in a bored manner.

"Doesn't matter." Bruce answered. "We were just discussing you two-"

"Before you start I just wanted to say that I don't want to be Batgirl." Mary said cutting Bruce off politely. Everyone looked towards her shocked.

"But Mary-" Stephanie started.

"I'm sorry, Steph, but I'd rather just be Starling. It was a persona I created, and it's important to me. I don't plan on giving it up any time soon." Mary told her.

Stephanie looked disappointed, but nodded. "I understand. It was only a suggestion. You always had a choice in the matter." Dick looked incredibly pleased next to Stephanie.

"Now that that's taken care of, let's go see if Alfred finished dinner. I'm starved." Dick said as he began to walk out of the room.

"Wait, Dick, were not finished here." Bruce called out to the younger man, "Stephanie brought up a good point. With your new Justice League position, you're time between that and Gotham will be split. Meaning Mary will be working in the field alone." Dick stayed silently, sure that Bruce was going to bring something else to their attention, "Also because of recent events it seems that it wouldn't be appropriate if I continued to let you go out on your own when I'm not around, Damian." Bruce told his youngest son.

"What!" Damian almost yelled. Mary quickly elbowed him harshly in his side, keeping him quiet and from starting another argument with Bruce.

Bruce didn't even react to the outburst, "Stephanie, you believe that Robin needs a partner when you retire. Dick, you wouldn't want to leave Mary alone in the field. And I do believe that because of a lack of maturity on Robin's part that he should be allowed to be in the field alone so much anymore. I propose a solution to this problem. Robin and Starling become partners."

"WHAT!" "NO!" Mary and Damian screamed at the same time.

Bruce raised an eyebrow at the two, "It's not a bad plan. You two already have good teamwork. You both started out working with the same person in the field so transitioning to each other won't be difficult. I don't see a problem with it. Dick, do you see any issues?"

Dick pondered for a moment, "No, I can trust both of them out in the field together. They both started out with me, so I doubt they'll have any issues. Plus, it's not like we're telling Damian and Tim from back in the early days to work together. Those two tried to kill each other for real on multiple occasions. Surprisingly, these two don't fight. They have a playful banter, but nothing like Jason and Tim, or Damian and Tim, or Jason and I from way back when. All in all, I think this just may work." Dick said approvingly.

"I agree. Mary is light and happy enough to keep Damian from being too brody. Damian has more experience than Mary, and will see things in the field that she won't. While Mary can see the bigger picture, Damian always remembers the task at hand." Stephanie said, "It's almost more perfect of a partnership then Batman and Robin."

"Hold up," Mary said, "Neither Damian nor I have agreed to this yet."

"Yeah. What Mini Grayson said."

"Sorry, but I like my current partner." Mary said.

"As do I, and I think we would rather like to keep them." Damian finished. Bruce thought about if for a moment.

"You can still work with us, and you will always be our partners, but due to circumstances I will have cases that I can not bring you on, Damian. Mary, the same with Dick. Until, you can prove yourself to me again. I don't want you in the field by yourself anymore, Damian."

"All of this because of some stupid arguments we've been having?" Damian asked seething quietly.

"It's much more than that, and you know it." Bruce waved him off. "If you two are so against working together, then you don't have to. You can just as easily wait for when a case brings me or Nightwing back to Gotham. Mary, you could easily start working with the Birds of Prey in your free time." Both Damian and Mary frowned at this idea.

"No, no, That's not necessary. Damian and will work together perfectly in the field, you'll see!" Mary said a little too quickly.

Damian turned to the girl so fast she could almost feel the wind coming off of him, "What are you-OUCH!" Mary elbowed him harder in the same exact place as before.

"See, Working together! We can totally do it! Watch I can see the headlines now _Robin &amp; Starling, Gotham's Best. _We'll work together easy peasy, promise!" Mary jerked Damian closer to her. "Right, Damian?"

Damian rubbed his side, "Yeah, sure. Since I obviously don't have a say in this."

"Good." Bruce announced, "You two will work together all this week. Is that understood."

"Yes, sir." They both said at the same time.

"Now, Alfred, probably has dinner finished. You two head down without us. We still have some things to discuss." The two kids nodded, and headed down the stairs once they were out of earshot Damian slapped Mary on the back of the head.

"That's for elbowing me!" Mary rubbed the back of her head. The boy could hit hard. "Now why the hell did you agree to that!" Damian hissed at her.

"Like Stephanie said, you don't see the bigger picture. Grandpa Bruce is testing you with this, Damian. This is your chance to get back on his good side. I know since that mission when you had to-"

"Don't." Damian stopped her. "I don't want to talk about it."

"Sorry," She apologised, "But this is still a really good chance for you to get back on his good side. Damian, I don't know if you have noticed, but you are a little hard to work with." Damian snorted at her words, "Yeah, this could prove that you can work with someone other than Bruce and my dad for long term. Bruce, is only looking out for your future. For all you know, Tim could pass down the Titans to you soon. I mean you are 13 now. Perfect age for a Teen Titan."

"Why would I want to lead a team full of brats?" Damian asked proudly.

"Because every hero that started out as Teen Titan, is now a major member of the Justice League. Look at Cyborg. He was a Titan, now he's in the inner circle of the league with Superman, Batman, Wonderwoman, and not even to mention all of the others. This could finally prove to Bruce and my dad that we have what it takes to work alone."

"By working together?"

"Exactly."

"Fine, small Grayson, I'll work with you, but if this fails I'm blaming you."

"Trust me, the feeling is likewise." And they shook hands on it.

* * *

Day 3 of working with Damian wasn't all that bad. Mary admitted to herself. Like her father, Bruce, and Stephanie had said the two did have a natural team work with one another. It was a very fluid partnership. Most of the time they didn't even need to speak to one another before doing something. Damian almost never had to ask Mary to take out the security of some place, or to go around from the back to get into somewhere. Mary never had to ask Damian what he was doing when he randomly disappeared. Yes, this partnership was almost perfect, and to Bruce's smug face they both admitted it begrudgingly.

"You can stop smirking like that, Gramps." Mary said slightly crestfallen. It had only taken three days, but both Damian and Mary knew that this partnership was for the better.

"Father, gloating is far beneath you." Damian commented after Mary.

"I'm not gloating." Bruce said turning to them with his smirking face, "Only appreciating my own idea. Though I thought it would take longer for you two to work together properly."

"How terrible it must be to be slightly wrong." Mary said sarcastically with an eye roll, "We've agreed to stay partners. Now give us some real missions, not just patrolling."

Giving one last look towards the kids, Bruce turned back towards the computer and pulled up some files. In the middle of the screen was a picture of what looked to be a villain.

"This is Donald Younginer, or Bass Drop as he likes to call himself. He's a new villain trying to climb his way up the totem pole. He wasn't really a threat until The Penguin started taking notice of him. Now Penguin's been hiring to take out some of his competition."

Mary ran up to the computer, "Okay, cool. So powers?"

"He's 21, and a sound engineering genius, He uses the devices attached to the palm of his hands to produce a sound wave large enough to crumble building. If he get's a hold of you, you may not be able to get away from him alive, or at least with whatever limb he was holding on to."

"So he's the guy that's taken down most of Black Mask's area and killed two cops by blowing of their arms." Damian said knowingly, "This sounds like something you would usually take over, Father." Damian said with raised eyebrows.

Bruce waved him off, "Yes, for a newbie Bass Drop is certainly making a mark, but I have a case I have to finish. I'm also curious as to how well you two will work together under stress." Both kids nodded.

"We'll take it." Mary said clamping a hand on Damian's shoulder. "Come on, Let's show this newbie how things work in Gotham City."

* * *

That night Robin and Starling did not hesitate to find out where this Bass Drop was going to strike next. There was absolutely no way Penguin was dealing with this new guy directly. Gothamites aren't really trusting to those who come from outside of the city. A natural bred distrust caused by a distrust among the city's inhabitants. It only took one call to Red Hood in order to find out all of the Penguin's handlers. Robin was able to narrow it done from there. Now they were currently sitting in a crappy Gotham apartment with said handler, named Remy Hart, sitting tied to one of his kitchen chairs.

"I AIN'T DO NOTHIN' I SWEAR!" Remy screamed. Robin punched him in the face hard.

"Stay quiet, or next time you lose teeth." He threatened.

Remy spat out a little blood, "Why are bats in my place?" He asked. "I'm staying' straight! I swear!"

Starling narrowed her eyes at the man and in a calm voice replied, "If that were the case you wouldn't be working for The Penguin, now would you? We want some information on a charge of your's. Penguin made you the handler of a Gotham Newbie, we want info now."

"I know nothing. I haven't even worked with the penguin in months." Remy Hart swore. Starling sighed as Robin growled and almost too quick for human eyes was upon the criminal.

"Don't lie to me." Robin ordered harshly. He grabbed Remy's index finger. "Next lie you tell me, I break it, and everyone other one for every lie you tell me after." Remy visibly paled. Starling sighed once more before placing a gentle hand on Robin's shoulder.

"Don't I'll tell you everything! He's going after Two-face's property tonight! That's all I know I swear!" Remy cried out.

Robin swore under his breathe, "Cobblepot's trying to upset the balance. Let's go, Starling." With that Robin took his leave out the window leaving Starling alone with Remy Hart.

Starling turned towards the man before releasing him off his bonds. He winced unsurprisingly at her touch. She frowned. Interrogations were never her favorite part of the job.

* * *

"This is good." Robin told her as they flew through the city on their lines. "We're ahead of schedule we can track down Younginer before he hits Two-Face."

Starling shook her head. "I don't think so, Robin. I think you were right earlier about Penguin wanting to upset the balance here in Gotham, but with Black Mask already dealt with, the situation is critical. We have to find a way to stop Penguin and Bass Drop without upsetting the balance in Gotham."

"How do you propose we do that? It would be simpler if we just went and dealt with Bass Drop then dealt with The Penguin."

Starling scoffed at her partner, "As if we could find anything tying Bass Drop to Penguin. We need real evidence that Penguin hired Bass Drop. If Black mask or Two-Face found out that Penguin was trying to take them out then-"

"We would have a war on our hands." Robin finished for her.

"Exactly." Starling nodded, "Now's the time to put those detective skills to use, Robin. Looks like we're heading to the Iceberg Lounge."

Luckily for the two kids the Iceberg Lounge wasn't too far away. Now the issue left, getting inside. Batman usually never wanted them going inside of the Iceberg alone, For good reason, but what choice did they Iceberg had top notch security. Though Starling assured Robin they had what it took to make it through unnoticed to Penguin's office. And they almost did give or take a few thugs they silently took down. Starling thanked X'hal for the creation of utility closets, or else they would have been found by then. It took them nearly half an hour to reach Penguin's office, Batman would have expected better of them, but he wasn't there at the moment.

"Robin," Starling called to her partner. She had been fumbling through papers in Penguin's office while Robin checked out his laptop. "Come look at this." She said. Robin moved from his place and came up behind Starling reading over her shoulder.

"This is-" Robin took the paper from Starling's grasp.

"A contract between Black Mask and The Penguin pretty much saying should they go to war with another major gang in Gotham they would work together." Starling finished for him, "Funny thing is, The Penguin has another but for Two-Face."

"Fuck." Robin cursed.

"My sentiments exactly. I had wondered what good it would do for The Penguin to start a war with Two-Face and Black Mask. After finding these I figured it out. Penguin plans to let the two duke it out, then take whatever's left after they destroy each other. Smart plan." Starling commented.

"Very Penguin-like." Robin sneered. "He's such a coward. What are we going to do about this?" Robin asked. "Even if we stopped Bass Drop, Black mask will still believe that Two-face attacked him and would retaliate."

"Crap. Penguin really covered all of his basses. If we let any war between the A-listers take place a lot of innocent people will die." Starling said. "Still, we can't let Bass Drop continue to destroy property no matter who it belongs to."

"That doesn't solve the issue." Robin pointed out.

Starling sent him a scowl, "Give me sometime. I'll come up with something," Starling promised. Then The two left The Iceberg lounge. It wasn't until much later that Penguin realized someone had been in his office. Not knowing what they had seen he burned every bit of evidence that could sent him back to Blackgate that night.

* * *

Donald Younginer, otherwise known as Bass Drop, approached Two-Face's money compound without any use of stealth or carefulness, not that he needed it. Sure, he was new to Gotham City, but The Bats didn't scare him one bit. People had warned him, but he took care of Black Mask's place and the dark Knight nor any of his lackeys showed up. He was halfway expecting a fight, but nothing happened and the plan went swimmingly. Of course, those Bats probably had other things to do besides of take care of his newbie self. There were bigger, and badder things that Batman needed to take care of.

That's why when a young, masked girl kicked him in the back of the head right when he was starting to turn up the bass really surprised him.

"Donald Younginer," She said with a smirk. "Sorry, but I'm going to have to ask for you to turn down." Bass drop rolled his eyes.

"what happened? Batman couldn't make it himself so he sent Bat-mite." He sneered at Starling.

"Hardy Har har." Starling laughed sarcastically, "I've never heard that one before. You are sooo creative. Tell me more about your brilliant mind." This time Starling rolled her eyes, "It's Starling, btw. Not that you care, but I thought that the guys in Blackgate would appreciate knowing who kicked your newbie behind." Starling barely had enough time to jump out off the way of one of Bass Drops deathly sound waves.

"Alright you little bitch. It's play time." Bass Drop readied himself for another attack, but Starling had already disappeared from his line of sight. He swore under his breath as he looked around for Starling, but he couldn't find her anywhere. He turned back towards the money compound, and she must have gone there he concluded and turned to walk down towards his job, but found in front of him was a young masked boy. Before Bass Drop could react, Robin delivered a nice uppercut to his chin knocking him to the ground, and disappearing before Bass Drop had time to recover.

Bass Drop stood up from his spot on the ground spitting out the tooth he lost from Robin's punch, "So there are two of you, eh? Why don't you face me for real?" Bass Drop challenged.

"Wow, You can really tell he's new here." Commented Starling's voice from the darkness. Bass Drop looked around but couldn't find the source of the voice.

"And he wonders why Batman didn't have time for him." Robin's voice floated out of the shadows, mocking Bass Drop. "Really, we could have taken you out 40 times by now. "

"You should be glad we have other plans for you, Donald Younginer."

Other Plan? Bass Drop thought to himself. Why would-

"Behind you." Robin's voice called out to him. He turned around to see Starling sitting on some wood crates and robin leaning against them. They looked relaxed, but Bass Drop knew not to underestimate them now.

"What are you talking about?" He questioned the two children. Bass Drop had heard about Robin, the demon spawn the streets liked to call him. They said that he was the one who killed all those bad guys even though Batman took the blame. Some even say he used to be an assassin for the League of Shadows. And the girl, Starling. Nightwing's protege, she was not to be trifled with. What she lacked in experience she made up for in aggression. Has a thing for kicking villains in the face. Unlike the other Bats, Starling fought like a brawler, more French kickboxing, and wrestling moves with her then the others neat and tidy Martial arts. Quite a fearsome reputation the both of them had, now they were both on to Bass Drop, and he was going to do whatever it took to get out of this.

"We're taking your job from you." Robin said quickly answering Bass Drop's question.

"What what-" Behind him Two-Face's whole compound exploded in the flames,There in the flames big and bright was the symbol of the bat. Shocked he faced the two young vigilante's. "If you were going to do that why stop me?" He asked confused.

"Because." Starling discreetly rolled a small capsule towards Bass Drop. "We couldn't have you spilling your guts, now could we?" Before H could respond the capsule released the gas it was holding inside knocking out Donald Younginer, Bass Drop.

When Bass Drop woke up, he was in Blackgate prison under a new alias and no one believed him and his tale about, Starling and Robin.

* * *

"YOU BLEW UP ONE OF TWO-FACE'S HIDEOUTS!" Batman roared at the two children. Starling winced, but Robin held his father's angry glare. They had returned to the cave and Batman was not happy about what he found on the news

"Technically, it was his money compound." Robin said, "You know the place where he hides all of his illegal money... Well not all of it, since he does everything in twos, he has another one somewhere"

"Shut up, shut up, shut up." Hissed Starling under breathe.

"Whose idea was this?" Batman growled. Before Starling could answer Robin did.

"Mine." He answered straight faced, "It was the quickest, and easiest way not to start a war between Black Mask, Dent, and Penguin." Starling would have stared at Robin, but she wasn't about to let Damian get caught in a lie with Bruce. His punishments would be lesser if Bruce didn't know he was lying. She felt like a coward not taking the blame. She'd have to thank him later, probably yell at him first, Then thank him.

Batman looked at Robin and Starling intently. Starling could see his jaw clench before he delivered a very harsh, "Fine. You two are off of this case. Robin, you're off of field work for two weeks."

"What!?" Starling said shocked, "Batman, You can't. It was a group effort. You can't just punish him and not punish me!"

"I can't have both of you not in field. Your father will deal with your punishment when he gets back from the mission the League sent him on. Till then, unless it's an emergency, you will not take any cases, you will just be patrolling, and you have to check in every hour with me. Not Oracle, me. Is that understood."

"Bru-"

"Yes, Father, We understand." Robin said. "We'll be taking our leave now." Robin took Starling my the wrist and dragged her unwillingly to change out of their uniforms. Starling glared at Robin. Seeming to ask him why he covered for. The plan was her idea, Robin only went along with it. She should have been the one benched not him. Robin seemed to understand the question in her gaze and shrugged unapologetically. He was already in trouble, he couldn't get into more. Well, he could but honestly he didn't really care.

"Don't worry about it, Little Grayson." He told her. "It's been a long night. Get some sleep." He patted her on the head before taking his leave. Mary stared at him until he was out of sight still confused as to the enigma that was Damian Wayne.

* * *

"So he took the blame?" Jason asked Mary. She was currently at his apartment avoiding Bruce's wrath. It seemed her plan had work. Black Mask and Two-Face were now after the Bat-family instead of each other, saving lives, but endangering there's. Mary wasn't sure Bruce would get over this any time soon. However, Jason spoke otherwise.

"Yeah, It was my plan. We were time crunched, and I knew Gotham couldn't handle an all out war between those superpowers. I had to make a choice." Mary said.

"If it makes you feel better, I think you made the right choice." Jason said leaning back on his couch taking a sip of his beer.

"Yeah, but I put our whole family's lives in danger." Mary protested.

Jason snorted, "We were already in danger. I'm kinda offended that Bruce doesn't think that we can handle the heat. I know he knows that we can, and that we have before. But I don't think it has anything to do with you, Starshine." Jason said honestly.

"You don't think he's made at us?" Mary clarified.

"No, I don't." Jason said. "Deep down he knows that you two kids made the right choice. There's a lot on Bruce's plate right now, kid. Bruce has a tendency to blow up and anything and everything. You saved lives, Mary. I know that, Bruce knows that, and Damian knows that. He took the blame because he felt that you guys made the right decision. If that kid didn't agree with the plan, or had his doubts he wouldn't have taken the blame for it. e would have let you take the fall, but he didn't. So take that with some grace."

Mary noded. On her wrist her watch began to beep. It was 11 O'clock. Time for patrols. "Work's calling. I'll see you later, Jason." Mary quickly put on her Uniform and jumped out of the window to start patrols. Jason chuckled as she left. She was going to be one of the best. He could just tell.

* * *

"This is Starling. Checking in as she was told to every hour on the hour." Starling said into her earpiece.

_"Good. Don't do anything dangerous tonight, Starling. Stay on your toes. Two-Face and Black Mask are gunning for anybody wearing the Bat symbol." _Batman replied.

"Noted." Starling turned off her comm and Headed towards the high ground. Bruce was right. Two-Face's men were everywhere looking for them. They wouldn't find her though. Starling would make sure of that.

Two streets away Starling heard a woman cry out, "HELP! PURSE SNATCHER!" Starling sighed. It seemed that even though most of Gotham's crooks were on the edge looking for Batman they had enough time to partake in petty crimes. Starling ran across the rooftops and dived into the alley she heard the scream.

"Miss, where did her take off to?" Starling asked. They shaken women pointed down the Alley, and Starling took off. It didn't take her long to find the purse snatcher, knock him out, and leave him for the cops. In 6 minutes tops she was walking back into the alley, The woman's purse in hand.

"Miss, I got your purse back." Starling announced. That's when she noticed a fallen form at the end of the alley. Starling ran towards. It was definitely the woman who had her person stolen from her. Starling held her breath as she looked for the women's pulse, and breathed a sigh of relief when she found it. Someone had just knocked her out. Thank X'hal, Starling thought to herself. Starling shivered, someone had knocked this woman, and that person was still in the alley.

Before she could react, Starling was grabbed. A white cloth was put over her mouth, and as Starling passed out she realized it was chloroform. Her attacker reached in her ear pulled out her earpiece, and left in in the alley taking Starling with, and disappearing without a trace.

* * *

"Master Damian, I do believe that Master Bruce forbade you from taking any part in work." Alfred said with a raised eyebrow. Though he didn't try to stop the teen.

"He forbade me from field work, this isn't the field last I checked." Damian replied. Damian said at the computer keeping track of everyone's whereabouts. He had a bad feeling, a very bad feeling.

"A loophole I'm sure he won't appreciate, Master Damian."

Damian sighed. Drake was fine, as was Brown. Cain was doing something in downtown Gotham. Todd, this was his night off. Grayson was away, and his father. Well, His father was in the east end close to Cain. They might be working together tonight. Damian checked back in on Mary's position. Notthing knew had been reported in fact she hadn't moved an inch since the last time he checked on her position. That sinking feeling in Damian stomach returned with a vengeance. It had been fifteen minutes since he last checked on Mary. She was on patrol there was no way she stayed in one position that long. Damian ran from the computer and hastingly put on his Robin uniform.

"Master Damian, You are grounded, or have you forgotten." Alfred yelled as the teen got onto his motor cycle.

"I have not." Robin replied grimly. "Alfred, call my father. Tell him I believe that Starling has been captured, and that I am in pursuit."

Alfred paled, Starling missing so close to when she almost died at the hands of the Joker. He didn't think he's heart could take another scare like that. "And what of her father?" Alfred asked.

"I don't want to ruin his mission before I even know if she's missing." Damian answered as his motorcycle roared to life, "I don't want to tell him till I know I'm right... But I pray that I'm wrong." and Robin shot out of the batcave full speed, following his tracker all the way to Starling's comm location.

Robin found the Alley empty save for a passed out woman.

"Hey, Wake up." Damian ordered rather harshly as he patted her cheek till she woke up. Her eyes quickly fluttered open.

"What? Oh My... What happened?" She asked rubbing her head.

"I was hoping you could tell me."

"A purse snatcher took my purse. I cried for help and that really young girl, Starling came and went after the guy. Just after she left a man came up behind me and put a rag around my mouth and nose. Next thing I know I'm waking up in your arms, young man." She told Robin.

Robin got up, now sure that the woman was fine, and scanned the alleyway for any clues. There right by where the woman lay was Her ear piece. Starling's ear piece, but no Starling. Robin swore.

"Batman." Robin pressed his ear piece.

"Did you find her?" Batman asked.

"No, Her ear piece was left in the alley. I have no way to start tracking her now." Robin swore he could hear Batman's teeth clench.

"Stay where you are. I'll meet you to see what you've found, then you need to go back to the cave." Batman ordered

"Excuse me?" Robin questioned. "Listen, Batman, Starling is my partner. It is my responsibility to find her. I refuse to sit back and wait for you to find her."

"Damian, It's dangerous out here tonight. I don't want-" Damian pulled the comm out of his ear, dropped it on the ground, and smashed it under his boot. It was his fault that Grayson was missing, and he was going to do everything in his power to find her.

* * *

Penguin watched the girls in the lounge work, and mused upon his most recent failure. His plan to get Two-Face and Black Mask to take each other out failed. Those damn bats. Oh well, at least they got what they deserved, now Black Mask and Two-Face would be after them. The Penguin chuckled at the idea.

Suddenly, the sound of Machine guns being fired startled the business man. His men looked confused for a moment before looking towards their boss for orders.

"Well, what are you waiting for! Go and find out what the hell is going on!" Penguin yelled at his men. Nodding each of them pulled out their handguns and ran towards the sound of gun fire. A few moments later the gunfire stopped and there was a terrified scream. Penguin laughed. Looks like he does pay enough for his men after all. He moved to get up from his seat when he felt a sharp blade resting against his neck. He then easily identified it it as a sword, but honestly that wasn't going through his mind at that very moment.

"Oswald Cobblepot, you have answers that I need." Whoever held him hostage growled.

"I ain't tellin' you nothing, pisspot!" He yelled. With a growl the assailant threw Penguin against the table harshly letting him get a glance at his attacker. It was Robin, the boy wonder. Who would have guessed that it was him who took out all of Penguin's security.

"Starling, I know someone has her, and I know you know who and where. I suggest answering quickly. My blade is hungry for the blood of my enemies."

"I said I ain't-" The Penguin screamed as Robin bent his arm back threatening to break it. "Fine! I heard a rumor that Two-Face had one of Batman's brats! I thought it was batgirl not the young one! He would be keeping her in one of his warehouses on the harbor!That's his usual sticht! That's all I know, I swear!" Slowly, Robin released The Penguin and threw to the ground.

"Well, be in touch." And Robin kicked him in the face knocking him out.

4 minutes later, The rest of Penguin's men arrived to find their boss out cold and whoever did the attacking long gone.

* * *

Robin breathed a sigh of relief when he found that Penguin's information had actually been right. Starling was in fact inside of the warehouse, and he was going to get her out. Sneaking into the place proved difficult. Two-face was expecting someone to save her, he wasn't wrong, but Robin wasn't going to fail. Too much was at stake to fail. As he got closer to the center of the warehouse he could finally see Starling, sitting tied to a chair.

She looked terrible. Her eyes swollen black, her cheek bones red from punches, and her mouth bloodied, but something seemed off about they way she looked. She looked more angry, then broken. In fact, It looked as if even though Two-face had her for four hours that he had yet to break her will. Her injuries and glare were testament to that. Robin admitted he was slightly impressed. He didn't think she could have held through torture being so new to being a vigilante.

"All you have to do is talk, little girl, and I'll end your suffering." Two-Face got close to Starling's face. She only glared at him in response.

"Go to hell, Pizza face." Starling declared boldly. Robin didn't have time to ponder Starling's words as Two-Face spoke again.

"You're going to break eventually." He told her. That's when Robin noticed a device in Two-faces hand. A trigger of some sorts, and when he pushed it Starling began to shake uncontrollably. Two-Face had electrified her chair. To her credit, Starling didn't scream, and Robin knew it had to hurt like shit. But Starling only gritted her teeth and bared the pain. Two face let go of the switch, to Robin it felt like such a long time, but in reality it was only about three minutes.

"Is that all you got?" She questioned with a condescending smirk that reminded Robin of her father.

"Not at all, Duckling." Two-Face sneered he moved to push the button again. Robin narrowed his eyes, he couldn't let him do that. Robin jumped down from the rafters above, ready to ponce onto Two-Face when he was suddenly shot straight in the chest before he could reach the ground.

Robin caught off of guard did all he could to avoid landing wrongly, but of course he dislocated his shoulder in the fall. Stopping rather harshly at Two-faces feet Robin could feel how broken ribs he had, but he wasn't dead. He should have been, but he wasn't.

Two-Face looked down at Robin on the ground, "Look at that, pretty bird. Someone did try to save you. Didn't I tell you it was only a matter of time?" Two-Face kicked Robin lightly as if checking to see if he was still alive. "This one still alive, Joe." He called out.

"Yeah, boss. I hit him with a round of rock salt. It'll sting like a bitch, but he ain't meeting Jesus any time soon." The crook said, replacing the the ammo he had just lost.

"Well, well, well, If I didn't know any better I would say this is Robin. He your boyfriend, or something?" Starling only glared at Two-Face even more harshly than she had before. "Don't worry I won't kill him... Yet. "

"Let him go!" Starling yelled.

Two-Fash laughed harshly in her face, "I don't think so, but since I do everything in twos anyways, I'll cut you a deal kid, You tell me everything I would need to know to take out Batman, like his secret identity, location of his secret base, and I'll let the both of ya go. What do you say to that?"

"I say that you're going to a very hot place when you die." She answered in a cheeky tone. She smiled at him, which didn't look as sweet as it normally did with her current injuries.

Two-Face returned her fake smile, "Tie him boys, upside down. I wonder how long it will take for the blood to rush to his head." Starling's cheeky grin faltered as she watched Robin being dragged to the other side of the room and hung upside down by his feet. She breathed slightly easier knowing he wasn't in any immediate danger, still they were in some serious trouble, and now would be coming to save them. She had to at least get Robin out of here.

Robin, only half conscious from his fall, eyed Starling with his blurring failing vision. He was bleeding but nothing too serious. He had failed to free Starling his first try, but he wouldn't be failing another time. He just had to wait for them to not pay attention to him, and he would get down himself.

"Take off his Belt, Gloves, and Boots. I know how the bats work. Can't have him escaping." Two-Face ordered. He turned back to Starling. "I'm giving you one last chance, Bird girl. The information I want or I will kill the both of you." Starling continued to glare at the man. Now Robin had no way of escaping all of his tools were in those parts of his uniform. They had nothing left. This is why Two-Face was an A-lister Starling realized. Before the incident with the Joker, Starling thought she was untouchable, but that was old Starling. The new Starling knew very well how close to death she came each night she went out in uniform, and she didn't care. She had to continue to help people, and right now the only people who needed rescuing were herself, and Robin. She had to think of a plan. She just had to. Stephanie's words from earlier in the week came back to her.

_You see the bigger the picture..._

The bigger picture. What was the bigger picture? Pressure hadn't been on her like this before, this time there was no failsafe. There was no Nightwing, there was no Batman. So what is the bigger picture, Starling thought to herself. The bigger picture. Starling took a deep breathe calming herself, and looked around the room. A standard warehouse, by the dock, but there had to be something she could use to free Robin. Something she could use to help them get out of there. Starling moved her confined feet slightly and heard an odd changeling noise. It was glass. There was glass on the floor. Starling almost sighed in relief.

Robin watched as Two-Face approached Starling, "So, girl, Tell me what I need to know to get my money back, or die."

Starling started laughing, "You really think I'm going to tell you anything, you big moron." She mocked him, "Batman will be here any minute, and once he gets here your butt will be rotting in Arkham, pizza face. I hope you feel good about yourself. You can't even take out real heroes anymore, I mean come on! I'm freaking 11, and it took all of your power to hold me and 13 year old here! Really, Dent, I thought you were an A-lister. The best of the best. When I started out you were one of the people I was afraid of going up against, but I was wrong. I've been using you this whole time! I now have enough to get you and your whole gang locked up for a very long time. You let a little girl play you, Harvey. How does that feel? You're not even in Gotham's big league, well the league of biggest losers."

Robin stared at Starling confused. What was her angle?

Two Fash grabbed Starling by the collar hoisting her up to his eye level. "You better watch your mouth, bird girl. Before you end up-" Starling head butted Two-Face in the nose, and heard a satisfying crunch of his nose and smirked to herself. With a scream of rage, Two-face dropped Starling, chair and all to the ground causing her to land on her side. Starling reached for the broken glass, quickly used it to uncut herself, then prayed to the goddess X'hal that this plan would work. Jason always told her she had good aim. Starling chucked the sharp piece of broken glass towards the rope holding Robin, and to her luck it cut the rope just enough so that it couldn't stand the teens weight and dropped him to the ground.

"You little bitch!" Two-Face roared as he moved to kick the Starling still stuck on the ground tied to the chair. Just as he wa about to kick Starling grabbed another piece of broken and stabbed him in the foot causing him to howl in pain once more. "That's it, birg girl. It's time to decide your fate." Two-Face flipped his marred double sided coin. "Tails, little girl. " He announced. he pulled out his gun and pointed it at Starling's head. "You lose."

"No, You lose." A Batarang suddenly hit Two-face straight in the face followed by a well placed kick to the groin. Robin had broken free, and was very angry. He easily tripped Two-Face making him fall to the ground. Robin swiftly picked up his gun and aimed it at Two-Face's head.

"What happened to my men that were watching you?" Two-Face asked.

"They really shouldn't play with utility belts with knockout gas triggers on them." Robin answered. He glared at Two-Face. "I should kill you." He said he unlocked the gun's safety. He aimed then pulled the trigger, only for it to click. Robin opened his hand and let all of the bullet's fall to the ground. "But I won't." He finished. "Remember who spared your life, when I could have so easily taken it." Then He punched Two-face in the stomach hard, knocking him out.

It was over. No big fight. No calling for outside help. They had did. They had saved each other.

"Starling, Are you okay?" Robin moved to her side.

"I'm fine, a little beaten up, but fine all around." She answered. He frowned at her lie.

"How long was he electrocuting you before I got here?" He asked her. Starling's face dropped,

"You saw that?" She paled.

"Oh Yeah." He said. Robin began to untie her bound arm.

"It didn't hurt all that much. Tamaranian durability and all that."

"Still, I'm impressed most couldn't have handle that level of interrogational torture." He told her

"We're not most people, Damian." Starling responded. He paused as he thought for a minute.

"How was he giving you shocks? Your suit is insulated." He told her narrowing his eyes at her. Starling bit her lip. Robin's eyes traveled down to Starling's legs which had two metal rod sticking out of them. That's why she couldn't get up to fight Two-Face off. He had stabbed her in the legs knowing and shock giving to her would be blocked by the suit, so he went deeper. Delivering the shocks straight to the inside of her body where there was no insulation. "Fucking Shit, Starling." Robin cursed.

"I'm fine." Starling said rolling her eyes. Robin looked at her not amused.

"I swear sometimes you are so much like your father I could kill you. He does the same thing with down playing injuries." He stated. "If you can stand on your own, then I'll believe that your fine." Starling frowned. He knew there was no way even with Her tamaranian slightly advanced healing that she couldn't stand yet. "I thought so." He rolled his eyes at her. "You're so stupid."

"You're stupid!" She retorted. "Why did you come after me alone, moron!"

"We're partners, right?" He told her. Starling paused. She hadn't been expecting that, but she was glad he said it.

"Yeah, of course we are." She said. And in that moment Robin and Starling truly became partners.

* * *

"Ok a dislocated shoulder, Electric burns on the legs, numerous cuts and bruises, and 4 broken ribs." Tim read out off both Mary and Damian's injuries. "How the hell did you manage that?" He asked.

"Well, we stopped a turf war in Gotham shifted their views to us, got captured and tortured for information/revenge. That sound about right, Grayson?" Damian asked.

"I don't know, I kinda have a concussion also so I don't remember." Mary joked.

Tim smiled at the two, "We're glad that you two are okay, we were looking Gotham up and down trying to find you, then you call us from the bunker seriously injured. You know most of us don't start our solo careers with getting hurt."

"New record! YEAH!" Mary cheered. "High five, Damian!" Mary held out her hand to be high fived.

"No."

"Don't leave me hanging."

"You're a moron."

"Your mom's a moron." Mary retorted.

"Are you 10?" Damian asked completely outraged by her comeback.

"Silly, Damian. I'm 11, totally more mature than a stupid 10 year old."

"Mary, you were 10 two months ago." Tim reminded.

Mary sighed in an over dramatic fashion, "OMG, Tim, why you gotta bring up old crap?" Tim rolled his eyes at her.

"Anyway, I'm heading to work." Tim announced as he walked to the door. "I wonder where Dick is. I mean he's such a mother hen that I thought he be-"

"MARY!" It seemed that Tim was right, much to his unluckiness. Dick plowed through him, hitting him in the face with the door, to get to his daughter's side. "Are you okay? I got here as soon as I can!"

"I'm fine, daddy." Mary pleaded, "No need to worry now that the danger's gone."

"I can't believe this happened so close after the incident with the Joker. You had me worried when Bruce called me saying that Two-Face had you."

"Two-Face wasn't that bad. Why are you worried still?" Mary asked.

Dick sighed, "When I was about 16, Two-Face kidnapped Batman, and almost killed me. He almost beat me to death. It was what caused me and Bruce to start fighting before I quit being Robin, and became Nightwing. It was one of the reasons I moved out of the Manor. Bruce was unbearable at the time, but then again so was I." Dick remembered

"Woah." Mary blinked up at her father, "I didn't know that."

"Two-Face is dangerous, and still a sore spot for me, so I usually don't like dealing with him."

"But sometimes, you just can't help it." Tim finished for him.

"Yup." Dick nodded in agreement. "I understand if you two don't want to be partners anymore. I'll make it so that I don't have to do a lot of league missions and I can stay here."

Mary shook her head, "No way, You're supposed to be in the Justice League, I mean you were a kid when they created it. So you have to be in it, Dad." Mary said. "Besides, this one little slip up didn't completely put me off of working with Damian."

"Okay." Dick said, "What about you, Damian?"

"I Have the same sentiments." He said.

"Alright. Well I'm going to let you two rest down here for now. I'll talk to you later. " Dick said with a wave. "Coming, Tim?" Tim nodded.

"Bye dad. Bye Tim." Mary waved as they left. "Soo, Partners?" she asked.

"We are Gotham's best, after all." Damian said reassuring her.

Gotham won't know what hit them.

* * *

_Final Word Count: 10234_

_Hello again lovelies! This is just a new chapter to start off the arc. Damian and Mary are now partners, so it's going to be a lot of them in Gotham doing there thing and growing up together. This will also be the last arc. I won't be going into any more arcs after this. Don't worry it won't be as short as Zero Year or Nightwing &amp; Starling. This is an arc that I knew I was going to do even before some of the chapters, and I'm uber excited that it's finally here. _

_Now onto the juicy details. I did omit two parts of this chapter. One during the interrogation, I had Mary stab Remy Hart in the hand and that's how they got the info they needed. Looking back on it I thought it was a little out of character for her right now. It's something I think could happen when Mary's older, but right now. The other was some more witty banter between Mary and Damian after they defeat Two-Face. It was a little boring plus I think I had enough witty banter during the recovery scene. _

_All in all, did I like this chapter? _

_Kinda?_

_I'm mean it was good to introduce you to the arc, but last chapter was definitely my Magnum Opus. It was the most fun to write, I was never bored writing it. _

_Tell me what's you're favorite chapter! I would love to know. Also I love any ideas you guys have about anything some of the characters would do or situations you could see them in. I have a lot more chapters already planned, but I love to hear your ideas. You guys are just so creative and helpful!_

_Special thanks to my reviewers from last chapter: **21 is awesome,** **MASSHERO-95, **and **Victory Goddess! **_

_You guys really have no idea how much you help me with my writing process. Never be afraid to tell me anything. You guys are like totally my best friends now! _

_Don't forget to favorite/review! _

_Love always, _

_ Miyu K.~ December 26, 2014_

_Next chapter: Songbirds &amp; Arrows_


	13. Gotham's Best 2

_White Rabbit_

Starling would be lying if she said that the current information in front of her didn't exactly bother her. On the computer screen in The Cage, the new base Batman had gotten Starling and her father for his birthday, was a list of no less than 12 missing children. 12 missing children had gone missing in the United States. This wasn't anything unusual, as children went missing daily, but something about this case stuck out to Starling. Apparently not only to Starling, She had found the case on Batman's computer. She didn't mean to snoop, but she had been waiting on Robin to get ready for patrol, and lately they had been getting really crappy cases...Not that they needed more excitement especially after the whole Two-Face incident four months back. So, she did a little digging. Batman was gone, and no one was there to tell her not to go digging. She had been surprised when the third case file she found was one on 12 missing children, none of which were from or living currently in Gotham, but for some reason it held some importance. It may have to do with the odd circumstances surrounding the children's disappearances. No, Starling knew that's exactly why Batman had taken interest in it, and those details haunted her.

The facts surrounding were vague to say the least. It seemed each child came from a different city, and each child was not affiliated with the other in any aspects. Each child was of different race, and background. Each child had different activities. The only thing tying these cases together was the fact that each child was taken in the span of one work week, 5 days, and each child went missing between the times five p.m. and Eight p.m. Also there were witness around at the time of each child's vanishment. Saying the child mysteriously vanished out of thin air. Impossible...Technically. Starling knew that some villain or someone out there must have the power of teleportation in order to get to so many places in such a short amount of time. Batman had already figured that or else there would be a list of people who had the time, money, and motive, and airplane records who would have done this. The file did actually have a list with those with Teleporting as a power all of those names were crossed out. One name peeked Starling's interest, Super-boy Prime, whoever the heck that was. Starling moved on that meant that it was someone new doing this someone not known to the League or Batman.

Still, the case rang figurative bells in Starling's head. The whole thing seemed familiar to her. The disappearing was just like when dealing with The Collector, but Starling knew that that couldn't be it. It was something else. The planning, the details, all seemed very familiar as if she had dealt with it before. And when she thought about it, something like a memory showed up in her mind's eye. A flash, but nothing helpful at all.

"Where did you get that?" Robin said, scaring Starling with his quiet entrance into The Cage.

After calming herself, Starling rolled her eyes at the teenager. "Where do you think? The Bat-computer. When I was waiting for you yesterday, I took the liberty of going through Batman's recent case files." She answered. "Have you seen this one?" She turned towards him. Most likely he had, but if he did why didn't he say anything?

"The twelve missing kids? Yes, I saw it. I don't know why you and Batman find this case so interesting. More kids go missing a day, but a measly 12 peeks both of your interest." That explained why he hadn't told her.

"I want to look into it." Starling said turning back to her computer.

Robin frowned at her, "With Nightwing, Oracle, and Red Robin out of town. Not to mention, My father is actually in Gotham this week. Batman won't give us this case. Not after, the Two-Face ordeal. Not with the fact, that we aren't on the best of terms right now."

"Still?" Starling asked. It's been almost a year since Batman and Robin started fighting. They never let it get in between their work so no one except Nightwing really took notice of it... Well, no one who cared enough anyway.

"Yeah..." Robin's gaze cut away from Starling. "It's not that big of a deal." He said. Starling rolled her eyes.

"Oh yeah, I'm so convinced. You're like five seconds away from a having such a major father complex that I should just call you Elektra. It totally doesn't bother you that your father who you've looked up to all of your life, and hope to be just like one day isn't really paying you any mind, because everyone just loves when a parent is mad at them, especially one who holds grudges longer than Huntress. Yeah, it's not a big deal at all." Starling said sarcastically

Robin glared at Starling, not that she was surprised. "Tt. No one asked you, Starling."

"Whatever... So, are you going to do everything that daddy tells you, or are you in?" Starling asked.

"If we miss Patrol, we'll be in more trouble than taking this case without permission." Robin said finally...Something about the case made both Starling and Batman check it twice. That meant something was up with it. He was a little curious to see what made them look at this case so thoroughly.

"Jason owes me for picking up his slack lately. He'll cover for us. It'll take Batman at least 8 hours figure out we're gone, but only 5 and a half hours to get to Oregon." Starling said.

"He can just see what plane we charted and follow us from there." Robin pointed out. Starling snorted.

"You act like Barbara never trained me. The first thing she taught me was to disappear. Online, that's almost impossible, but since all of the files I used are on a flash drive. Batman won't know what case we're on to stop us."

"That didn't answer my question."

"I'm getting to that. Gosh, can't I have a minute to monologue?" She told him, "I never planned on taking one of our planes, or paying for a commercial flight in the first place, you know?"

Robin stared at her surprised, "You can hack into the airlines database and get us tickets?"

"From here without Batman or Oracle knowing? Heck, no. From the airport? It'll be easy from one of their computers. The one thing that'll will be hard though-"

"Is not getting spotted on the security cameras." Robin finished for her.

Starling smirked at him, "I think that's more your expertise then mine. You're better at stealth then I ever could be."

"Got that right. I can get you in easy. But why Oregon? Star City is in Northern California." Robin thought for a minute, "To throw off Batman. Smart, it's the closest airport not in the state. What is it a five-six hour bus ride from there?"

"Four and half." Starling corrected. "We'll be in Star City by the time he even realizes we're gone. Our plane ride is in 2 hours. I'll stop by Jason's place tell him the bare minimum, and meet you in the airport in civvies in 20."

"Got it. Try not to get us caught." He chuckled on his way out.

"Please." Starling groaned. "Get going before you're late."

They were both on time, hair in hats, sunglasses on not that it'll do much to through off Batman's computer. Getting in turned out to be less than an issue then they both previously thought, Damian easily got into the Airliner's computer data base behind one of the consoles without being seen, from there Mary switched over some tickets from a very lovely couple and put it under some false names, Carmen and Antonio Arroyo. Less then an hour and a half later, The plane was taking off, and Mary breathed a little bit easier.

Bruce was going to be so pissed when he found them, but Mary had to know what was going on in this case.

Mary slept through most of the flight on Damian's shoulder, something he gripped about when they landed. He apparently decided to stay awake the whole plane ride as if he was expecting the Bat-plane to fly up right next to their plane at any moment. Mary finally talked him into sleeping they bus ride down to San Francisco. He did, and was so much more pleasant when they had finally gotten to San Francisco.

Just as they stepped off the bus, Damian's phone rang. Damian and Mary stared at each other. It didn't take a genius to figure out who it was. It was Bruce, specifically a very pissed off Bruce who wanted to know why their phones had been rerouted to make it look like they were in Gotham when they were clearly not. That was not a conversation either of them wanted to have. After a silent, mental argument over it they both agreed to let the call ring. Bruce was sneaky should they actually talk to him, he might make it their quicker. Though it would appease his anger to talk to him, they still needed more time. They wasted a total of 8 and a half hours getting to San Francisco, now they actually had work to do.

"So what now?" Damian asked.

"The last victim's house, She was the eldest out of the bunch, one of the few to be actually 18." Mary told him. "She lives downtown in an apartment. I have the address."

"So what? We take a cab." Damian sounded horrified at the idea.

"Yeah, rich boy, a cab. Don't worry, like any common thug can actually kidnap us. Let's go!" Mary pulled Damian out of the bus station and hailed a taxi. It was a nice older gentlemen.

"Where are you two young kids going by yourself? You all live in Star?" He asked when they gotten inside.

"It's break for me and my brother here." Mary said in a good, but strong Jersey accent. "We're from the Jersey Shore. We're going to see our Aunt, she's been begging us to come over to the west coast." Damian glared at her. He was doing a lot of that lately, but it was the best plan. Accents made people look less at physical appearance. They would only be remembered by their thick accents.

"Right." Damian replied with the same accent. He looked at the cab driver's eyes in the mirror. The man smiled at him before turning his eyes back on to the road giving Damian a mirror's glance at Mary. He swore loudly at what he saw.

* * *

"What do you mean you let them go?" Batman growled to the Red Hood. Red Hood yawned, he knew the dark knight far too well to be scared by the tactics used on the common criminal. "Well, Jason?"

"Like I could tell them no. It would be fucking hypocritical of me. I did far worse when I was Robin. "

"So you let them go on an unknown case alone without supervision? What if something happens to them?"

Red Hood blinked up at Batman, "You know, You sure do pick and choose when you want to be worried. You'll put a nine year old Dick against the likes of Joker and Two-Face, but sending not one but two well trained fighters on a case is foreign to you. I think it has to do with the fact that you're not actually in control of this situation. Relax, B-Man."

Batman glared at Red Hood, "Jason, We don't know who their up against. For all we know it could be something too dangerous for the both of them to handle."

Hood snorted, "Then you underestimate them. I trained Starling myself, and I know that she can handle herself for the most part. She's not just some kid with a dream and a Batarang like I was. And Robin, The boy is a natural born fighter. I trust Mary more with him then I do you." Red Hood paused, "Because should their lives become a factor, I know that Damian won't hesitate to do what's necessary in order to make it home alive with Mary in tow."

Batman's eyes narrowed at him, "He doesn't kill anymore. I taught him not to kill."

"Ha! You taught me that, too. Look what happened. You see me and the little demon got a lot in common. There's a reason we stopped killing, Bruce. It's out of respect for you that we now spare the lives of our enemies." Jason said. "So yes, we don't kill. You taught us not to kill, but if there was no other way out."

"There's always a way out!" He argued.

"That depends, and you know it. You have the blood of so many of your friends on your hands because you wouldn't kill. Now, I don't begrudge you for that, and I respect that you decide not to kill your enemies, but let me quote Wonder Woman when I saw, there's a reason I don't have long term enemies like you and Superman. Because I don't threats carry out to that point. Damian's the same way, you may not see it now, but then again. I always saw things in a different light than you."

"You finished preaching?" Batman asked.

"For now." Red Hood moved pulled out his phone from his pocket. "Now back to the topic at hand. Damian and Mary took off somewhere, she wouldn't tell me where."

"And you were supposed to cover for them." Batman finished.

"Yes and No. They expect me to cover for them. She just told me to take their patrol route for the night. Hence, why I'm answering your questions instead of making myself scarce."

"You just let her go?"

"Yes. I mean, what did you want me to do? Keep her here? Tell her to go home, where there is no supervision? Tell her to leave it alone? I don't know if you've realized yet Bruce, but when you tell the young ones no, they tend to do the opposite. Dick did it. I did it on more than one occasion. Babs did it. Even the holier-than-thou children Tim and Cassandra have done it. So how bout for once we learn from our mistakes, and try a different tactic. We watch from afar, and only intervene when necessary."

Batman looked at Red Hood surprised. "You-!"

"You didn't actually think I let Mary go anywhere without us knowing. I may be crazy, but I'm not stupid. " Red Hood tossed his phone to Batman who caught it with ease, "Now let's see where those kids are headed."

* * *

"Fucking Shit! Fuck!" Damian cursed.

"What? What?!" Mary panicked.

"You've been fucking tagged!" Damian pulled the fabric of Mary's leather Jacket. "How the hell did you get tagged!?"

"Tagged?" Mary echoed, then she thought about it. "Jason..." She hissed. "Jason freaking tagged me. I thought he was cool!"

Damian rolled his eyes, "Well, now you know better." He turned to the driver, he already knew how to fix this mess. He tapped the man on his shoulder discreetly placing the tracker on the man. "We're going to give 500 dollars to keep your mouth shut about seeing us." The man looked in the review mirror slightly scared.

"I don't want any trouble..."

"There won't be." Damian assured him. "The people I don't want finding us are good people. When you see them you'll trust them. Just don't tell them anything more than the truth."

"and what's the truth?" The man asked smartly.

Damian smirked, "That we payed you to go to San Jose." Damian pulled out the money, more than 500 dollars. "There's another 500 in it for you to stay in San Jose at least two days."

"You've got yourself a deal, kid. I don't want to know what's going on, but a thousand dollars to stay in San Jose works for me."

"Also," Mary decided to add. "Don't stay in a place more than 4 hours. If you can do that I'll have more money wired to your account for your troubles Mr..." Mary looked at the name on the dashboard, "Mr. Carson."

Mr. Carson nodded, "Okay, so where do you want me to drop you kids off?"

"Don't worry about us." Damian answered quickly.

Mary nodded, "No matter what happens, , I'm asking you not to stop the car. You have to keep driving." She told him

"Got it." He said understanding.

"Mary." Damian called. The place that would be safest to jump out was coming up. Mary could see it as she addressed the cab driver.

"You've been so much help already. Just remember, the only thing you tell him is that we paid you to go to San Jose. Just that nothing more." He nodded again. "Great. We'll be seeing you now . If you follow our directions, I promise your bank account is going to look very pleasing very soon." Mary unbuckled her seatbelt then rolled down the window. "Goodbye, Mr. Carson." Next thing the cab driver knew the girl who had to be no older then twelve jumped out of his car window while he was going at least 55 mph. The boy followed not two seconds after. It took all of his will power not to slam on his breaks and check on those kids, but he needed the money, and he had to follow their directions. He checked in his review mirror for them. The girl was already standing up, brushing the gravel off her outfit, and helping the boy stand up. There wasn't a scratch on either of them. Mr. Carson let out a breathe he didn't realize he was holding. He began to wonder what those kids were into. After looking in the back seat and seeing the 1000 dollars sitting there, Mr. Carson realized, it wasn't any of his business.

* * *

"Now how are we going to get to Star City" Damian asked. They were still in San Francisco and were a bit aways from Star.

Mary sighed, "I didn't want to, but I guess I'm going to have to call in a favor. " Mary said. She paused remembering they couldn't use their phones. "Come on, I think I saw a dinner or something about 10 minutes back." Mary said patting Damian on the shoulder, and they walked back down going back closer to San Francisco and getting further away from Star.

They eventually made it to the restaurant, which was some old diner looking place with an older woman running the counter.

"What can I do for you, sweeties?" She asked kindly as they walked in.

Mary released a fake sigh of relief. "Oh thank god!" She said running up to the counter. "My dad's car broke down up the road, and our phone's are out of charge. You wouldn't happen to have a phone I could use?"

"Oh, you poor dears!" She cooed. "Such beautiful children! Don't worry, here use my cell." She reached into the pocket of her apron and handed it to Mary.

"Thank you so much." Mary gave her a grateful look. Mary quickly dialed the number. It only rang once before a confused voice picked up.

"Um..Hello?"

"It's Mary." She said quickly. The girl on the other line sighed in relief.

"Oh crap. You scared me. I didn't know who was calling me. What's up?"

"I need you to pick us up." Mary said.

"Sorry, but I don't live in Gotham. And us whose with you?" She asked.

"Just me and my brother, Damian."

"Ewww, Damian's not your brother... Are their people around? Are you speaking in code? That fucking sucks, bird-girl."

"Yes." Mary ground out slightly annoyed.

"Okay, I'll come and get you. I'll get my dad, and-"

"No." Mary said quickly trying not to yell. "Just come. You don't need to stop anywhere."

"Ohhh, now I'm curious. You're up to something, Mary Grayson, and I want in. Where are you?"

"Leanna's dinner in San Francisco."

"Got it. Be there in 20 minutes, just hang tight!" And she hung up. Mary sighed, and handed the phone back to the waitress, who disappeared into the kitchen. Mary really didn't feel like dealing with _her _right now.

"She'll be here in 20, Damian." Mary told her partner.

"May I ask whose's coming to get us?" He asked eye brows raised looking so much like his father. Mary shook her head. He wasn't going to like this.

"You aren't going to like this..."She stated.

Damian gave her a leveled look, "Who's coming?"

"Lian Harper." Mary answered with a squeak.

Damian paused, "Please tell me you're joking." His face serious... Well, more serious then it usually was, and that scared Mary a little.

"You can't be seriously thinking about asking _her_ for a ride! Why didn't you just call a cab!" Damian hissed an angry whisper at her.

"Oh yeah! So, I can just alert Bruce to where ever the hell we're going. When he finds that cabbie, he'll be checking all of them, and the subway! Don't yell at me for my choice! Lian is my friend." Mary hissed back.

Damian frowned at Mary, "Lian Harper, is untrained and dangerous."

"Lian Harper, has as much training as me. She only lacks the experience. It's not her fault her dad refuses to let her be hero." Mary pointed out. Damian though was right in his wariness of Lian Harper.

Lian Harper was Damian's age. She had been trained by Red Arrow, now known as Arsenal, Black Canary, and Green Arrow. Sadly, Lian Harper was not a hero. Mary thought to herself.

"She's at least trustworthy. I know you have issues with her after last year-"

"Hell Yeah, I have issues! She knocked you out and pretended to be Starling! How the fuck is she trustworthy?" Mary sighed. Damian's good opinion once lost is lost forever, unless you impress him... Maybe not even if you're Lian.

"Yeah, Damian, and I forgave her for that. We're good friends now." Mary insisted, "And like I said, she is trustworthy."

"Fine. I'd like to see how her 13 year old self gives us a ride." Damian retorted. Mary paled.

Crap, she hadn't thought about that.

* * *

To no one's real surprise Lian did not show up alone, next to her was Lian's long time babysitter, Mia Dearden.

Mary sighed. She had read Mia's file, Mary supposed she wouldn't snitch, but then again more people made it easier for Batman to find them, and the easier it was the faster it would be.

"I don't suppose you would give us a ride then go home and pretend you never saw us?" Mary asked.

Mia snorted, "Hell no. Get in the car. You two have got a case to debrief us on." Mia ordered.

Mary sighed, "That's what I thought." Damian rolled his eyes, and only glared at Lian. He didn't like her. That was obvious, but he kept his mouth shut and followed Mary into the back seat of the car.

"Now the case, you've got." Lian said once they had gotten on the road.

"This is the deal," Mary started, "About a dozen kids in the U.S have gone missing. All major cities excluding Gotham have been hit, this city is the lastest one. Guess, it's lucky number 12. "

"Okay, what do we have to go on?" Mia asked looking in the rearview mirror. "Because that doesn't sound like a lot."

"You're right, it isn't much, but I do have a little more. Each child was taken in a week's time span, from different cities such as Chicago, Metropolis, Manhattan, D.C, Jump , Star, and Central."

"That's quite a fast traveler, so what are we dealing with an insane flight attendant?" Lian asked.

Mary shook her head, "That or a teleporter."

Silence followed Mary's words. She expected that because-

"Bullshit!" Damian said speaking for the first time since they had gotten in the car. Mary hadn't told him her hypothesis. Just case specifics.

"I'm going to agree with the Boy Wonder here." Mia gave Mary a skeptical look in the rear view mirror. Lian said nothing only giving Mary a crazy look.

"You know no one has a teleportation power that strong! No one can teleport with that kind of range. That's hundreds of miles we're talking about, Mini Grayson. There's no way." Damian argued.

"Unless, it's someone not in the data base." Mary pointed out.

"Yeah, but what's the chance of that?"

"1 out 598,725." Mary answered quickly. Damian not fazed that she actually answered, kept going.

"See, what's the likelihood that someone with undocumented powers like that are going to go unnoticed by someone! With so many heroes, I think one would know of a long range teleporter!"

"Yes, but we still have undocumented alien landings!" Mary argued back, "Not to mention the undocumented Meta-humans that are discovering their powers daily. There are plenty of people who we could not know with this power. Think about it, 12 kids missing in under week? All those cities hit in that short of a time period? It has to be a teleporter of some kind. I wouldn't even think it if it weren't possible, but it is, and it make sense. So, are you guys still with me?"

Damian glared at Mary for the what seemed to be the millionth time that day, but nodded.

Mia sighed, "Fine, but only because I want to see if it really is a long range teleporter."

"I'm still in! I get to get out of the house and do a case right under my dad's nose! Two birds one stone!"

"Good. There were going to need to go 724 Valleystay Park, because that's the address of our latest victim."

Mia nodded, but the car into a different gear and sped onto the freeway.

* * *

Mr. Carson, the cab driver, wasn't sure what to expect when those kids told him that someone would be coming to him looking for them. It sure as hell was not The Goddamn Batman.

Now, He wasn't sure of what to do because the Batman was standing at the foot of his bed, in his motel room, glaring at him with some other masked character cleaning a gun next to him. Yes, Mr. Carson was about five seconds from wetting his pants.

"Mr. Robert Carson." Said the gruff voice of Batman. "We have some questions to ask you." Yeah, he kind of figured, but said nothing. Fear kept him from opening his mouth.

"You got the poor guy scared half to death, Batman. Give him a break he probably doesn't know anything anyway. I doubt those kids told him much." Said the man in the red mask, who Mr. Carson later found out to be the Red Hood, a crime lord in Gotham. Yeah, what the fuck did Mr Carson get into.

"Y-You want to know about those two k-kids?" Mr. Carson stuttered. Who the hell were those kids? Mr. Carson thought to himself.

"Yes, now where did you take them?" Batman growled. Mr. Carson winced. What did he ever do to deserve this? What was he supposed to tell the friggin' Batman. Mr. Carson then remembered what that young girl had told him. Tell him the truth.

"They paid me a 1000 dollars to drive to San Jose. That's all I know, I swear!" Mr. Carson said in a rushed scared tone. Red Hood must have found his fright amusing because he laughed.

"See?" He said to the Batman, "They're in San Jose. That was easy. It'll take a while to find them so we better get going."

"It's never this easy." Batman retorted sharply. "We found the tracer on him, so either Starling or Robin found it, and purposely left it on him so we would come here. Unless, we didn't train them well enough. There is no way either of them are in San Jose." Mr. Carson gulped. He had figured it out. What the hell was he supposed to do now? "Now, the question is Mr. Carson," Batman grabbed the man by the collar of his shirt and lifted him into the air, and in and eerily calm, but frightening voice said, "What else do you know."

Needless to say, Mr. Carson figuratively spilled his guts. Revealing that the kids had walked back to San Francisco, but had originally planned to go to Star City. After that, he didn't know anything else, and the Batman and Red Hood left him in the peace of his motel room. His only thought is as followed;

_That was totally not worth 1000 dollars. _

With Batman and Red Hood, Red Hood was currently calling Arsenal on his phone so that they could meet up. Now, they would find Robin and Starling in no time.

* * *

Breaking into the home of missing person, Amanda Summers turned out not to be very difficult. Though it did take longer because Lian and Damian had gotten into an argument about who should be the one to pick the lock. While they were arguing, Mia took it upon herself to do it, and let Mary and herself inside.

Of course, neither of them were pleased with this outcome.

"Why are we here? What can you possibly get from coming here and to not where the girl had gone missing?" Lian asked looking around the house.

"A confirmation of what I already know." Mary answered heading down the hall where she hoped the girl's room would be. Lian followed her.

"A confirmation of what?"

Mary opened a door only to find a bathroom and sighed. She continued down the hall, "All the other children were special...Talented in some way. Each were award-winning children in either athletics or academics. One girl was gymnastics prodigy, she's 10 and said to be the next Gabby Douglas. She was taken from a gymnastics competition. One boy was a computer genius. He is 12. He created a computer virus that could eat through any computer system in the world, he sold to the American government for 10.5 million dollars. He was taken from a computer convention. Another girl is MMA fighter, she is 15 and was taken from her dressing room right before her belt winning fight. A 7 year old boy, who can speak 12 different languages fluently was kidnapped right before his interview on the Ellen Show. All these kids were special in some way and taken without a trace, without any evidence, from a place related to their talents. Amanda Summers was the only one who was not. Her details about her kidnapping were different. I couldn't find any information on her really."

"So, you came here, to her home." Lian finished. "What was different about her case?"

"Amanda Summers did not go missing at something related to her talent, but at a friend's birthday dinner. Like the others no evidence. I also don't know if she does anything special. No News Paper articles about her, no social media. She's like the only 18 year old in the world with a Facebook or Twitter. So, I had to come and confirm if she was special in some way, too." Mary opened a door, and clicked on the lights. She smiled. "Bingo."

On the wall, on a shelf was countless, and countless trophies, medals and certificates. Mary and Lian walked inside. Mary picked up a certificate. "First Place state track meet, 100 meter dash." She read aloud. "Like I said, gifted and talented."

Lian let out a whistle, "Dang, looks like she was heading to the olympics from the looks of it."

Mary nodded, "Damian get in here." She called out through the house. He walked through the door, Mia right behind him. He looked at Mary then at the wall of awards.

"She fits the M.O." He declared.

"And then some," Mary replied. "What's are next course of action?" She asked him.

Damian thought for a moment, "The kid right before this one was in Jump, right?" Mary nodded, "Then they're bound to hit something else on this coast, as well. Remember they hit Manhattan, D.C, and Metropolis in a day. The kid in jump was taken only a couple of hours before this girl went missing."

"You think they're working based on what area they are in?" Mia asked

"I know they are." Damian said confidently.

"That's good. Then this is almost too easy!" Mary cheered. "All we have to do is find some sort of national or state competition that's happening either today or tomorrow. Mia, you know of any?"

"No, not into all of that kind of stuff." She answered.

"I don't know anything either." Lian sighed. Mary sucked her teeth, then eyed what she needed on Amanda Summers's desk.

"Perfect! A laptop." She moved to the desk, thanked god Amanda's password was her middle name, and began searching. "Crap! How could I forget!"

"Forget What?!" Damian ran up to the computer and looked at what she found.

"Dance Nationals. I had forgotten about that." Mary sulked down into the desk chair. "Funny, that I still get go."

"What is she talking about?" Lian asked Damian, but he only shrugged.

Mary laughed a little cold, odd laugh. "Hey Damian, you remember my last dance competition?"

"Yeah, but I couldn't go because-

"You were working a case in Dubai with Batman. I know, I know. Did you know I got first place? Did you know that competition was the state wide qualifier to see who would go represent New Jersey at the Nationals in San Francisco?"

Mia looked confused, "If you won, then why aren't you there?"

Mary sighed, "You know why. Because to do what we do-"

"We have to make sacrifices." Damian finished for her, "Grayson, you knew that from day one. Now is not the time to cry over it. Lives are at stake and we have a job to do." Mary nodded.

"Then we need to head back to San Francisco." Mary said her moment of weakness over and done with. "From there, we can scout out who would take these kids and stop them from getting lucky number 13."

"We'll need back stage access for that kind of thing. Last I checked, we need a dance team to do that."

"My dance team is already there." Mary said. "I'll just name drop and get us back there. We'll need some hairspray first.

"Why?"

Mary rolled her eyes, "As an excuse as to why we didn't walk in with them. Let's go, the competition starts in two hours."

* * *

Jason had to hand it to those kids. When they wanted to stay gone, they stayed gone. He thought it was funny, but Green Arrow, Black Canary, Arsenal, and Batman did not find it as amusing as he did. Probably because Damian and Mary had drawn Mia and Lian into their little disappearing act... Haha. Oops.

Surprise, Surprise. They, of course, blamed him. However, Jason pointed out, Lian has been doing worse shit since she was in grade school. That shut Roy up, but Dinah and Ollie still grilled him about letting Damian and Mary go in the first place. Really, the parentals need to chill. Mia, who was an adult technically, was with them. The kid had a good head on her shoulders. She would take care of the youngsters. She was Tim's age, but had more street smarts then him in her pinky finger. Now, he really wasn't worried Mary and Damian. They'd show up back in Gotham when they were done as if nothing had ever happened.

Of course, Batman would hear none of it. He didn't like being left out of the loop. Fucking hypocrite.

"Okay, if they came here to work a case, where would they go?" Arsenal asked.

"I have about 5 cases that would lead them here."

"So, what you're saying it would take to long to track them down." Dinah said. "What if they're not here on a case?"

Both Red Hood and Batman snorted. "Mary, maybe. But Damian is with her, so no."

"Yeah, but Damian wouldn't let Mary leave Gotham alone." Roy pointed out. True, Jason thought to himself. He had been threatened enough to know not to leave the younger girl alone, not that she wasn't capable, but because surprises did happen, and she's never worked solo before.

"So, what is here that Mary would sneak out of Gotham to go?" Canary asked.

Red Hood snapped as it came to him. "Dance Nationals."

Everyone in the room turned to him, "What?"

"Dance Nationals. I don't know if any of you remember, but Mary Grayson is the number one dancer in the state of New Jersey."Jason said with a lot of pride. "She qualified to be able to go to Nationals and if she won that to internationals."

Batman frowned, "She opted out of going, though."

"Yeah, but did she really want to go?" Green Arrow asked.

"Hell yeah," Hood answered, "She was pretty torn up about it, when her father and B-Man told her that she couldn't go."

Canary turned to Batman, "You told her she couldn't go! Why? She worked her ass off and beat every kid in the state of New Jersey, she should be able to go."

"That's what I said!" Red Hood intervened.

"And if she won, she would have been even more in the public eye. More chances for someone to connect her to Starling. I have no doubt that if she would have went she would have won, but that's the issue." Batman said. " Sacrifices have to be made for what we do. She understood that, and handed her chance to go to the second placer."

"So you killed, not only her chance to go, but her dance team's?" Canary said outraged

"No, the second place kid was on her dance team, plus they're going because they placed first in groups." He kept his cool. He was used to Canary.

"Oh yeah, that's totally not going to bother her." Roy said sarcastically.

"She's 11, Bruce. She should be able to be 11. And that means School, dance competitions, the whole nine yards." Canary scolded.

"She wouldn't have entered after we told her not to." Batman replied ignoring Black Canary's comment.

"She might not, but she would go and watch and cheer her teammates on." Roy argued.

Red Hood ponder this, "I don't think so..." He said. "I still think she and Damian are on a case."

"Yeah, but this a big enough lead for us to still check out." Canary said. "So, Bruce and Jason, You two civvies on. You can go inside and look for her. Technically, you have a good enough reason to be there. The rest of us will stay outside and look for them see if they come in after you, or leave."

"Sounds like a plan, Pretty bird." Green Arrow agreed.

"I'm game." Arsenal said standing up.

Batman and Red Hood exchanged a glance. It seemed neither of them believed Mary or Damian to be at this dance competition, but it couldn't hurt to check. After a few seconds they both nodded. Maybe, they would be able to find something there.

"Alright. Let's go."

* * *

"Lady Listen, I'm Mary Grayson I'm in the Jersey Revolutionaries! Kevin needs his hairspray, you gotta let me give it to him. Come on, we forgot it back at our hotel! I had to run back there with our ride to go get so you really need to let us through before Kevin pitches a fit. He hates it when his hair isn't done properly for competitions. It affects his mojo, he'll do badly on his solo. So please, let us through..."

The woman looked unsure, but Mary's story was so far checking out, all but the missing hairspray. There was a Kevin with the New Jersey Dance team, and he was in solos so..."Alright here. Take these passes, and go on. But be quick the competition is going to start soon. Solos are first."

Mary smiled at the lady, "Thanks, we'll be fast. Let's go guys!" And Mary ran inside with the rest trailing behind her going a similar speed.

"Okay, now that we're here. Who would the kidnapper be going after?" Lian asked.

"Easy, only two people here are even close to be on the list for potential targets." Mary answered, running through the crowd of dancers getting dresses. " Casey and Gavin, their dance partners, and they dominate where ever they go. Separate, you might can beat them, but together you have snowballs chance in hell. I faced them at a competition in New York City. In Solos, I got bumped 4th place, and in duets they destroyed me and my partner Kevin with their Beetlejuice routine. We still got second but they were still a good 10 points ahead of us. Needless to say we weren't every happy with the outcome of that competition."

"And they both are competing separate for solos today?" Asked Mia.

"Ummm... Maybe. I don't know. They live in different states and only come together for a few competitions, they might be. Hold on I'll look." Mary quickly found the schedule. Sure enough, both were on the list for Solos and Duets. "Yeah. This just got harder."

"We'll have to split up." Damian said. "Lian and Mary, stay with Casey. Mia, you and me are going to watch Gavin. Most likely after each one performs the kidnapper will try and kidnap them, so we got to watch them. Something might change like with Amanda Summers. The kidnapper could get impatient."

"Got it."

"And Mary, don't let any of your friends see you here. It'll be too hard to explain." And with that, they parted ways.

"Wait, Mary, Do they even know what Gavin looks like?" Lian asked.

"Damian's not stupid." Mary answered. "He's been to dance competitions with me before, and he saw the list. Casey is going third meaning she's already by the stage waiting her turn to go on. That's where we're going. While Gavin isn't going until way after, so he's still getting ready in the dressing room. That's how he'll find him. The names of the dance studios are outside the doors."

"Ohh, You guys are good." Lian commented.

"We've just doing doing this a long time." Mary replied.

Lian paused for a second, "Do you think that..." She paused again, "Do you think if my dad had let me start when I was your age. I'd be good, too? I mean, I know I'm a good fighter, but all this guessing and searching, and detective work, and sneaking around. I don't know if I would be good at that. Maybe, my dad was right about keeping me out of all this."

Mary stopped walking letting Lian crash into her suddenly still back before turning around and giving her a glare Damian would be proud of. "Don't say that. Don't even think it. Lian, if you had started when you were 9/10 like I did, I know for a fact you'd be the best. Even now, you're keeping up with me and Damian. With no experience, too. Once you get out there, you'll be the best of our generation, Lian. Don't sell yourself short. All you have to do to achieve that greatness is to get on your dad's butt about letting you get out there. "

"You really think so?" She asked.

"I know so. Now, let's get going. If we catch this crook. You can prove to your dad that you are ready. Even if the whole Starling stunt didn't make him believe it this surely will." Mary grabbed Lian's hand and pulled her towards back stage.

When they got to the door, Mary stopped.

"Why did you stop? Don't we need to be back there?" Lian asked.

"People really aren't allowed back there. So, we need to find a way not to get us in trouble. We need a bird's eye view." Mary said looking around.

"How bout that." Lian pointed to the door a little ways off labeled catwalk.

"Good eyes, Lian. That's perfect." Mary and Lian rushed to the door, Lian quickly picked the lock and the two of them headed up the stares and onto the stage's Catwalk, where the lights were. Luckily, no one needed to do it manually today, so Mary and Lian didn't have to worry about getting caught with everyone else watching the dancing.

"Look, Lian. That's Casey." Mary pointed backstage where a brown-haired girl was stretching.

"Okay, we got visual." Lian pulled out a scope to get a closer look a Casey, and her surroundings. "So far nothing suspicious to report."

"Starling to Robin, We've got visual, nothing to report." Mary said in her comm.

"Robin, here. Speedy and I also have visual. No suspicious characters around to report. Keep radio silence until something of importance occurs. Clear?"

"Reading you loud." And Mary turned off her comm. "Keep close watch, Lian." She told the older girl.

"Gotcha'. Just call me Hawkeye."

Mary watched the boy soloist on stage. She didn't know him. A kid from florida, when he finished Casey would go. After that it would be the perfect opportunity for the kidnapper to strike. No one would be paying attention to Casey as she made her way back to the dressing room. Mary had to focus on everything surrounding Casey, well she was supposed to, if the figure of someone she knew didn't distract her.

She saw him the moment he walked backstage. He was wearing a ring leader costume complete with a little hat. It was Kevin Thompson, Her Best friend, Her Dance partner. And she knew this dance. It was originally a duet. It was originally their duet, but with Mary gone it had to be a solo. Mary wasn't going to lie. It hurt that she wasn't there with Kevin backstage stretching as they waited their turn, but she knew she couldn't. She made her choice years ago when she came to earth what she was going to do, and that was be a superhero.

However, no matter how much Kevin distracted her from her current Job, nothing could distract her from that terrible smell.

Mary pinched her nose, "What the heck is that smell?" She said in a nasally tone.

Lian looked at her with a confused face as she sniffed the air, "What smell? I don't smell anything."

"Heightened Senses. Of all the the powers to keep." Lian blinked at Mary.

"You have powers?" she asked.

"Not anymore." Mary said still pinching her nose. The sound of clapping began to fill the room. "Look alive, Casey's going on stage." The crowd quieted as quickly as they started clapping and Casey came onto the stage. She was doing a hip hop dance. While new to the style like Mary, she absolutely killed in a way Mary wished she could . Casey really was the best. That's why she wasn't surprised when mid way through Casey's dance, a girl came backstage.

Mary would have thought she was a dancer the way she was dressed. A scantily clad outfit of white, with matching bunny ears and white hair, but last she checked no one over 16 was doing this competitions, and the girl below was about 18 herself. She looked around, no one else seemed to notice her presence and just waited leaning against the wall.

"Lian, 10 O'clock. The white rabbit girl. Possible suspect." Mary informed.

"What? She looks like a dancer to me."

"She's too old for this division. She has to be at least 18, maybe older. This competition only goes to 16."

"Then call it in." Lian said. "Want me to go down there?"

"No, I will. Stay here and cover me case anything goes wrong. Got it?" Lian nodded. Mary turned back on her comm link, "Star to Boy Wonder, I've got visual on potential suspect, I'm making contact."

"Don't do anything stupid, Small Grayson."

"Yeah, Yeah." Mary turned to Lian, and handed her an extra comm link. "You can stay in contact with me and Damian with this." Lian took it and put it in her ear.

"This is Little Red, now on the comm." She said.

"Robin and Speedy got you loud and clear." Damian replied.

"Go quickly, Mary. I think Casey's almost done." Lian urged, and Mary descended down the steps and headed back stage.

The corner the girl stood in was empty when she had gotten down there. Mary looked around and saw nothing. No white rabbit girl, at all.

"What are you doing, Starling? The girl's right behind you." Mary didn't reply for fear of someone noticing her talking to herself, but swung around, and again saw nothing. "Really, Star, are you blind now? She's right in front of you!" Mary looked up from the floor and jumped back as the white rabbit girl now stood in front of her where Mary had seen her from the catwalk.

"Oh my, you scared me." Mary said talking to the girl. The girl looked up at Mary confused, and looked around as if she didn't know Mary was talking to her. Then smiled sweetly at her. Another Power, Mary thought to herself. She can make herself unnoticeable.

"Yeah, I'm a little hard to notice." She said back.

Mary smirked, She could easily out her now. "Are you a dancer?"

"Yeah, I'm just waiting my turn!"

Hook, line, and sinker. "How old are you? And how long have you been dancing?" Mary asked.

"Oh I'm 19. I've been dancing since I was 5. I love it. Competing and all of that jazz." she said with an uncomfortable chuckle.

"19! Wow, that's amazing, since this competition only goes to the age of 16." Mary smiled at the girl, but she only narrowed her eyes at her. "I suggest you leave before I call security." Mary told her.

"Really, you little girl is going to call security. Big Whoop." She grabbed Mary's wrist harshly and squeezed it in her grasp. "I'm bigger than you little girl. Now, if you know what's good for you, you'll forget you ever saw me."

"How about you let me go before you're in a world of pain." Mary growled.

"And what are you going to do to me, 5 footer." She said applying more pressure to Mary's wrist. Suddenly a small arrow whizzed in between there faces and imbedded itself in the wall behind them. Both of them looked out towards the catwalk. Luckily, you couldn't see anything with the lights on.

"Crap, the Arrow. How'd he know about me?!" White rabbit let go of Mary's wrist.

"I got your back, Star." Lian reported in the ear comm. Mary sent a smile her way and turned back to White Rabbit to find her suddenly gone. "Oh crap." Lian said in her ear. Yeah, Mary had the same sentiment.

Mary ran from backstage speaking into her ear comm, not noticing that someone had noticed her on her way out. Someone she really didn't need seeing her, Kevin.

* * *

"Little Red, Robin, Speedy, time to regroup. I think we scared her off." Mary said into the comm.

"Great! How are we going to catch her now!" Damian groaned.

"Wasn't me." Mary said, "Lian was the one who fires an arrow at her. Now, the girl thinks Ollie's on her tail."

"You have a bow on you?" Mia asked.

"Yeah, my crossbow! Uncle Ollie says never leave home without it!"

"You might have just blown the case there, Arrowette." Damian said mockingly.

"Hey! Mary was about to blow her cover!"

"I had it under control! Besides, I had plan!"

"Didn't sound like it." Lian said under her breathe.

"Hey, How about yo-

"Enough." Mia intervened. "Everyone meet back in the parking garage, at the car. Starling, I know you have some good news to tell us in the car. Now break." Mary turned off her comm. Two minutes later, Lian was by her side, and they were at the car soon after.

"So, what's the good news?" Mia asked. Mary smirked.

"White Rabbit grabbed my wrist she made it almost to easy." Mary pulled out her phone, on her screen a map with a blinking Purple bird on it.

"You tagged her." Damian said with a grin. "Where'd you learn that trick?" He asked sarcastically.

Mary laughed, "I'll have to thank Jason when we get home for the crash course on tagging people. "

* * *

As The group of four left the competition did Bruce Wayne and Jason Todd pull in.

"We're in position, Arrow. You see them?" Bruce said into his ear piece.

"Nothing on our end?" Green arrow reported in the comm. Bruce nodded to Jason and they both headed inside. It was easy to convince the person at the entrance table that they were parents going to see a child. After that they made their way to Mary's dance team's dressing room.

"Oh My, Bruce Wayne! How nice of you to drop by!" Said Mary's head coach, Michelle Bissonnette.

"Hello, Ms. Bissonnette, Has Mary happened to drop by?" Bruce asked putting on that award winning smile.

"Oh no, Mary said she was staying in Gotham this weekend. That it was one of her uncle's birthday, I think?" Now, Ms. Michelle was giving Bruce and Jason a suspicious look. "Is everything alright?"

"Yes," Jason said. "It's my brother's Birthday, you know the one, Timothy." Jason lied. "We brought him to San Fran, for his birthday. His favorite restaurant's here." Michelle smiled fondly at them, all suspicion left her eyes.

"Yes," Bruce said. "Mary and her father were supposed to be picking Tim up from the airport, but they said they would stop here first. You sure you didn't see them?"

"No, I'm sorry. I guess she didn't have time to stop by. It would have been nice to see her." Said Michelle.

"Well, thank you. We'll be going. Good luck to all of you." Bruce waved and began to head out when a young boy's voice stopped him.

"Mr. Wayne, Jason, Wait." It was Kevin Thompson. "I think I saw Mary here actually."

A girl snorted, "Come on, Kev. We haven't seen Mary here. Mr. Wayne's probably busy."

"No, really!" He turned back to Bruce and Jason. "She was Back Stage, right before I went on for my solo. She looked like she was about to get into a fight with some girl dressed like a playboy bunny. Next thing I knew, The girl was gone and Mary was walking out talking to herself. From the way she was talking it sounded like she was talking to Damian. I think she had a bluetooth in her ear or something. I couldn't really tell."

"You sure it was her?" Jason asked.

"At first I wasn't then I heard her voice. She always sounds annoyed when she's talking to Damian. That's how I knew it was her. Plus, the hair going to her butt is a dead giveaway."

Jason grinned, "Thanks, Kev. I'll see you back in Gotham." Jason turned to Bruce, "Ready." Bruce nodded. "Bye." As they walked out of the room, Roy's voice spoke in the Comm.

"I got visual on Mia's car. Currently following it."

"Keep on them. We'll be right there."

"Now let's see what Mary and Damian are up to." Jason said with a smirk.

* * *

"We're here." Speedy announced. They had changed into their gear during the drive over, a little awkward(Damian had to close his eyes) but doable. Starling has not idea how Speedy did it while driving, but who cares. Apparently, Ollie had an Outfit made for Lian, Why? No one knows, probably for moments like this one.

"Inside Apartment 8 is the White Rabbit." Said Starling.

"What we go in and kick ass?" Lian asked. Starling shook her head.

"As much as I want to, we wouldn't find the missing kids that way." Robin said.

"We need to capture her." Speedy said

"A little spying is necessary." Starling added with a frown. She hated stealth.

"Got it." Lian got out of the car, and followed the heroes up the fire escape to the 8th floor. Starling peeked inside.

"I think it's safe to go in this room." She fiddled with the window, unlocking it, and opened it before slipping inside. Silently, Robin and Speedy followed. Lian followed their lead.

Robin moved ahead of Starling, peering down the hallway, while signaling them to stop moving. He stayed there as he made a motion pointing to his ear. Listen.

A voice, that Starling recognized as The White Rabbit went down the hallway. She sounded as if she were upset, her voice steadily rising. Lian looking down the hallway saw the last room door open and inside, The White Rabbit.

"I had to go the Arrows were onto me!...I don't know how they found out about me...I know you wanted that Casey girl and her partner Gavin, but it just wasn't happening...I'll find out where their next competition is and get them there...Yeah, yeah, I know...I'll move onto the next target." The White Rabbit continued on like this for the next couple minutes. It seemed she would indefinitely. Starling, Robin, and Speedy turned to each other and started having a silent conversation that Lian didn't understand. She must have missed the course on super hero mind reading. She thought to herself, sarcastically. Finally, they all turned to her expectingly.

She stared at them unsure of what they wanted of her. Then Robin motioned his head toward the room with White Rabbit. Lian felt her lips form and "O" shape. They wanted her to make the first move against The White Rabbit. Lian looked up at them unsure. She was dying for this moment, and now that it was here, well...It was different then what she had expected. Starling gave Lian a huge grin and two thumbs up. Speedy gave her a small smile with an encouraging nod, and Robin tapped his wrist as if a watch was there telling her to get on with it. Lian released a breathe she just now realized she was holding.

Lian reached for her bow, and put it into position. She reached in her quiver, and pulled out an arrow, setting it up properly. She aimed straight into the room, where she watched The White Rabbit pacing around the room arguing with whoever was on the phone with her. She Paused Right in front of the door. With an Inhale, Lian pulled back, and with an exhale she released. She sent The arrow flying into the room not hitting The White Rabbit at all, instead hitting the phone in her hand an pinning it to the wall.

The White Rabbit gasped, and ran to close the door. Only for it to be kicked not even a second later by Starling.

"You're late for a very important date, White Rabbit." Starling sang.

"That was absolutely terrible." Speedy said bow armed and ready.

"She gets it from Nightwing." Robin sighed. "You get used to horrible one-liners. If you think that's bad be on a stakeout with her, she doesn't shut up."

"How do you even manage?"

"Barely."

"I'm right here!" Starling cried. "Don't talk about me like I'm not here. You two are terrible!" Starling turned to Lian. "Very Nicely done with the Phone, Little Red. Very Creative."

"Seconded." Speedy agreed.

"Now, White Rabbit. I think you have some answers for us." Robin said cracking his knuckles.

White Rabbit backed against the wall, "What do you want with me?"

Robin raised an eyebrow at her, "Really? You kidnap 12 children in the span of a school week, and you what to know what we want with you. We're here to order girl scout cookies, of course." He snapped.

"I won't tell you anything." She proclaimed. Starling rolled her eyes.

"It's always the same song and dance with you guys. Speedy, An arrow if you don't mind." Not a second later an arrow was in the wall right above The White Rabbit's head. She screamed and crouched down onto the floor.

Robin snorted a short laugh, but stopped when Starling shot him a look.

"Okay, Okay. I'll tell you what you want to know. Just don't kill me!" She screamed.

"That was easy." Lian commented.

Starling gazed at the white rabbit hard before pointing at her in astonishment. "You're the one who stinks!" She yelled.

"What?"

"What?"

"What the actual hell, Starling?"

Starling Jumped up and down, "Hear me out, Robin. This is important." She swore.

"Yeah, right!"

"No, Really! She's not human!"

"Again, What?" Speedy said confused.

"Explain yourself, girl." Robin ordered.

"She's an alien, guys. Like not from Earth, I know because she still smells like space. How long have you been on earth anyway 2 weeks tops? It takes at least a month to get rid of the open space smell."

"Hold the phone." Speedy relaxed her bow. "Space has a smell?"

Starling tapped her chin in thought, "It's hard to explain since you human, can't experience it. Well, Hal would know, it's kind of a thing I can't explain, but yes, Space has a smell. You're not human, right?" Starling asked The White Rabbit.

"Why should I tell you!?" She screamed at them gaining some courage.

"Another arrow, Speedy." Robin ordered.

"Another Arrow?"

"Another arrow", he confirmed. Another arrow found it's place right above her left ear. Again White Rabbit screamed.

"OKAY! Yes, I'm an alien, just please stop!"

"You're kind of cowardly." Starling noted. "What? Don't tell me you're Amarian? You Look Amarian, pink eyes and all. Oh yeah, you have to be Amarian."

"Amarian?" Robin asked.

"Yeah, a small planet that has gotten taken over by multiple other planets in it's history. They're cowardly people, with simple magic properties. Each Amarian's powers are different, but they all tend to be ruled by their emotions."

"Meaning?" Lian asked.

"That she probably can't teleport right now because she's too scared."

Robin held back another laugh. "So let's get back onto important things. Why are you kidnapping these kids?"

White Rabbit peeked out from the position that was hiding her face. "I don't know!"

"Speedy-"

"WAIT NO! I swear I don't know! I'm hired to get the kids! She heard about my powers, and pays me a lot to get them! I don't know why she does it! Don't hurt me!" White Rabbit cried.

"Now, Where do they keep the kids?" Starling asked.

"I don't know that, either! I pass them to her, and she takes them some place else. We meet in Paris with the kids, after that she takes them some place I don't know."

Robin sucked his teeth, "Tt, Then what do you know? Because right now it looks like nothing."

"I know her name!" White Rabbit pleaded, "Or at least what she calls herself! She calls herself The Red Queen. That's all I know, I swear! I'm just a thief for hire really!"

Only Robin noticed the way Starling froze, it was only for a fraction of a second, but Starling froze before ordering Robin in a cold voice. "Call Batman, She's the league's problem now. They're going to want to know about her long range teleportation powers, and the missing children she helped kidnapped. I'm done here." Starling walked out of the room and onto the fire escape. She shivered though it wasn't cold outside. She needed air. She needed space.

Alicia Royal, The Red Queen, would be turning 11 this year. Young, but deadly, it seemed no matter where Starling went she could never escape Alicia's hold on her.

"Starling," Robin came out onto the fire escape. "Batman and Hood are here. They apparently followed us here from the dance competition with most of Lian's family."

"That's good." Starling answered.

"You're not okay." It wasn't a question, but an observation Robin made. "Red Queen, that's the Royal girl, isn't it?"

"Yes. "

"Is she what drew you to this case?" Robin asked.

"I don't know." Starling answered honestly. "I felt something familiar about the case. That's why I..." She trailed off.

"Familiar how?" Robin asked. Starling didn't answer him. "Familiar How, Starling?" Still no answer. "Answer me, Mary!"

Starling looked up at Robin fear in her eyes, "I think I planned this, Damian."

* * *

_Final word count: 11,171(God Bless a decent length) _

_Now, I have returned from dead! BWAHAHAHA(jk) I know, I've been gone long. Yeah, since last year. Not a real year, but my last update was in 2014 it is now 2015 even if it was like a day after christmas. It's been a good while. Still shorter than most! The Main reason for the long time is because I went back to the drawing board with this chapter. It was an idea I had as a filler chapter were the Arrow family comes to Gotham, but I hated the idea when I really thought about. So I nixed it. I then wrote the chapter I wanted about the missing children and white Rabbit. I wanted Mar'i to be older, but it seems better this way. I was able to add some aspects from the original draft like Lian, I wasn't able to add Olivia Queen though :( Yeah that makes me sad maybe later on. I added Mia cause she is cool yo. Also the Dance Kids are based off of real people, Kaycee Rice and Gabe de Guzman. They do my favorite dance called Beetlejuice. Look them up! Kaycee is the reason Mar'i dances in my story. _

_Also Alicia Royal is coming back, slowly but surely. Oh, What does she have planned. Only I know(Even I barely know), Alicia is slick like that. I wonder what she plans to do with all those kids? _

_Now What you guys think about new Wonder Woman Design... I don't like it. If they wanted pants The injustice one is cute. Also, Kori's new look as well? Kori's pretty in anything, so I don't care. Did ya'll see Batman Vs Robin surprising good in my opinion, I honestly thought it was going to be shit, but it wasn't bad like the first one...Or War. I also loved Assault on Arkham It was a beautiful movie man one of Faves now. _

_I'm still choosing what I'm doing next chapter, we'll see mostly because I have things in my head that I might decide to do. When I decide I'll get on the next chapter!_

_Special thanks to my reviewers, **Gabysweet10, Son Of Whitebeard, 21 is awesome, a guest reviewer, and JadenCage **for reviewing my story. You guys are the reason I want to be a better writer. _

_What do you think of this chapter? _

_Any Comments/Concerns/Critiques _

_Then please Review!_

_Love, _

_~Miyu K. April 5, 2015 _


	14. Gotham's best 3

_**Gotham's Best 3**_

_**Displacement (1 of 2)**_

_"Kyle?" Silver Siren called out through the house. "_

_"Fuck." Silver Siren muttered to herself. She ran back into the room to get her bag, then ran down the hallway as fast as she could making sure that no one was watching. "I have to get out." Siren spoke to herself, pushing herself onwards without her fallen comrade. "I need to go before She finds me." Running to the back room Siren made a haste opening the nice vault and pulling out a very impressively sized gun before turning around and finding her worst Nightmare standing before her._

_"R-R-Red Queen." Siren stuttered at the sight of the woman before her. With soft smile, Red Queen walked into the room flagging her two masked females, one dark skinned with wild curly hair, and the other of pale skin and dark long locks. The Red Queen's long clock wrapped around her and fell to the ground with its length._

_"Hello, Siren." The Queen spoke to the other woman. "I believe you have something I want." With wide eyes Silver Siren backed away from the royal._

_"I don't know what you're talking about!" Siren claimed. The Red Queen frowned._

_"Don't lie..." She paused. "Actually, don't lie so pitifully. It's almost disgraceful, you could at least die with some pride." She turned to the pale skinned girl on her left, "Miss Bertinelli, if you please." As almost as fast as she said the words the girl's hand was around Silver Siren's neck threat to stop her breathing. With a feral grin, the girl laughed as Siren winced in pain._

_"Now Now, Isabella." The Red Queen scolded lightly. "Don't kill her yet. She still has a chance to redeem herself."_

_"I won't tell you anything you crazy, Bitch!" Silver Siren Spat at The Red Queen only missing by a few inches. Again, the queen frowned and nodded her head towards Isabella._

_Silver Siren screamed out in pain as Isabella Bertinelli broke her arm in three places. "Now, Siren. We used to be such good friends. I would hate for this friendship to end on bad terms. I just want to know where the device is, and I promise to let you go."_

_Silver Siren laughed a hollow laugh, "Please you and I both know that's a lie, Queenie. Don't use those stupid tricks on me. I won't tell you." Showing an emotion other than disappointment and mild amusement, Red Queen glared at the woman._

_"Fine, be like that, Sonya." She turned away from the woman, thinking for a minute before turning back, a pleasant smile returning to her face. " She turned to the to her girl, that seemed to be guarding her, "Tatiana, you know Ms. Siren's son, yes? He's in our care." The girl looked confused._

_"I'm sorry, Milady, but I'm afraid that the Missus here does not resemble anyone I know." Tatiana replied._

_"Ahh, but you do." The Red Queen's small smile grew into a grin, "Rico, he's younger than you. I believe you help train him in some of our classes." Comprehension lite up on the girl's faces._

_"Yes, I do know, Rico, but I'm afraid he does not look at all like the missus standing before me."_

_"True, but it is hard to resemble someone you've never meet, Tatiana." The queen answered._

_Silver Siren growled from her position in Isabella, "Don't you dare touch my son!" She hissed._

_Red Queen looked offended at that thought, "Why I would never." she sneered. "Unlike you, Rico is one of my most talented, and most loyal of all of my Dolls. I wouldn't harm a hair on his head." As She paused Siren breathed out a sigh of release, "But, I might just send him out on his first kill mission." The Silver Siren paled at the idea._

_"It is about time, Milady." Replied Tatiana_

_"Yes," Agreed, Isabella, "He's 13 now. I killed my first when I was younger than him."_

_"Don't you dare!" Silver Siren thrashed about in Isabella's hold, but couldn't release herself from it._

_"You can fix all of this, Sonya." The Queen spoke. "Tell me where it is, and you're son goes back into to training for another year."_

_The Silver Siren began to cry tears, but her son's innocence was a stake and the life of a person. "Fine. It's in the back room." She answered. Now nothing would stop The Red Queen from ruling forever. With a sweet smile, the queen nodded her head towards Tiffany who made her way down the hallway into the back room._

_"Milady, you may want to come and look at this." She called. Red Queen's once young looking features turned up into a displeased look._

_"Isabella, bring her." And she turned down the hall to meet Tatiana. "Miss Fox, what can possible be an issue that you need me to-" She stopped as she saw what was in the room. The device, yes, but something else with it._

_"It's a man, Milady." Isabella said shocked._

_"A handsome man, Milady." Tatiana corrected. "May we bring him back to the Dollhouse?"_

_"No, no. He's much to old to join the likes of us now. Maybe if he were younger." She reprimanded lightly. The queen turned to Siren." What is this young man's importance?" she asked. "and don't bother lying or playing stupid. I really don't have the time."_

_"We found him with the device. He was injured, but still tried to fight us so that we wouldn't get to it." She answered, "We were going to kill him, but according to boy, the device won't work in this world if he's dead. We thought it a lie, but..."_

_"Didn't want to take the chance." She finished. "Understandable. I won't either." The Queen turned to walk away. "Tatiana, since you find yourself so attached to that young man, you bring him." The young girl almost squealed in delight. "Isabella, kill the spare."_

_"What no! I helped you!" Silver Siren screamed out. Isabella smiled a sadistic, mad smirk._

_"May I help her, Milady?" Tatiana asked, staring the siren down like a rabid wolf._

_The queen waved her off, "Do what ever you two like. Just meet me back at HQ with the boy and device in two hours."_

_As the queen walked out she find herself humming along to the screams and cries of the soon deceased, Silver Siren._

* * *

"Seven days!" Mary cried. "I was under her control for a full week, and no one even noticed till it was too late!"

Dick Grayson, her father, tried to console her, "It's not you're fault, Mar'i. And that was years ago, who knew it was going to come back and bite us all in the butt."

"She told us she'd come back!" Mary screamed. "I should have been better prepared, noticed the signs, something! But I didn't now, she has over 200 kids in her custody, and we don't know where they are."

"Again, I repeat, It's not your fault, Mary." Dick repeated.

"Yeah, Small Grayson. You barely remember the time under her control right?" Damian said. Mary blushed in embarrassment.

"How convenient for the Red Queen." Cassandra remarked.

"It's weird. I try to remember it, but I can't even remember half of the things I've said or did during that time. I only remember the things you all told me I did when I was under her control."

"So, the question is, What are we going to do now?" Asked Tim.

This is why they had gathered. The whole family together discussing, a monster they had let loose unto the world.

"We can start with what she knows." Bruce said turning to the computer opening The Red Queen's case file.

"Good place, " Commented Tim. "We know, Mary was under her control for, at least a week. It's safe to assume that any information that Mary has is now with Alicia Royal."

"So what? Secret identities, plans, bases, weapons? All of that knowledge is basically with the the enemy?" Stephanie said sounding slightly panicked.

"Wait, it might not be that bad." Mary said. "I only knew about a few bat-bunkers, modes of transports, and some of what's in our weapon stocks. There's also the stuff that Bruce doesn't tell us about."

"True." Agreed Jason. "Also, if she already knew half of these stuff then she couldn't have already attacked us in our homes. She hasn't even exposed our identities to the public meaning..."

"She probably won't." Next to Jason, Barbara nodded. "It's safe to say that at least for now, Alicia Royal won't be attacking our homes."

Mary breathed out a sigh of relief. If she had her way, Alicia Royal would be trapped somewhere on some remote island with no way to get off.

Mary Grayson paced around the batcave listening to her family discuss what they were going to do with they're current dilemma. Alicia Royal, The Red Queen.

"Mary, so nothing about any of Alicia's plans?" Stephanie asked her finally. It looked as if the discussion was now dying down. They Had nothing to do, but to only react to whatever Alicia Royal does next.

Mary shook her head, "I get bits and pieces, Flashes, but nothing that can tell me exactly what she's doing. It's a miracle I even remember planning these kidnappings, at all"

"She most likely did this on purpose." Bruce said, "A failsafe in case you did end up back with us."

"If I had to take a guess. It looks to me like she is building an army." Cass pondered the file on the computer in front of her. "Young children, that many of them. She could train them to be whoever she wanted them to be."

Jason slapped himself in the forehead, "How did we not see that?! The 12 that were taken, those talented, smart, athletic kids, once trained by those former Talons for a few years, will be killers."

"Killers completely loyal to Alicia Royal." Damian finished. "And With that Hypnos implant those kids will be ready to die for her in a year alone. Think about with only two weeks exposure to it Mary was already so loyal to her. Think about someone, a young, impressionable child being in her care for months, years. With the type of training, moving in a unit with someone like Alicia Royal ordering them. She could have small countries under her control."

"That sounds like Alicia." Mary commented, "She would do something demented like that. The less freewill I had the more she loved it. Controlling me, like I was some kind of puppet." She shivered at the memories. "Bruce, we can't let those kids go through that!"

Sadly, Bruce only shook his head, "There have been over 200 cases with similar M.O's the twelve you and Damian solved, probably dozen mores, and all spanning back to about a year and a half ago. For some of those kids we might already be too late."

"Not to mention, we have no idea where she even is." Jason said, "We heard about this through a third party. We weren't supposed to know about it until she was knocking at our door. "

"So, we do nothing!" Mary said outraged.

"No," Her father said, "We look for clues. That white rabbit thief said she had others kidnapping kids for her, if we can track one of them down, they might get us closer to Royal."

"That might as well be nothing. While we're looking, those kids are being stripped of their individuality, and made into Alicia's own personal toys. You don't know what that's like!" Mary yelled. "Having someone do that to you. It's sick, demented. It's-" Mary was cut off by the sounds of screeching tires coming towards the batcave. Mary ran to the bars close enough to see a Luke fox, in his batwing costume stepping out of his car.

"Luke, is something wrong?" Bruce ran to meet the young man only about Tim's age.

Luke took of his mask, eyes red from tears and spoke, "Tiffany's missing." He looked around the room at everyone, "We have no idea what's happened to her."

"Tiffany's missing?" Bruce wasted no time putting on his cowl, and heading over to the Batmobile. "Take me to where she was taken, from there we can determine what happened to her."

"I'm going, too." Tim said and in a hurry put on his domino mask.

"You all were at her cheer competition, right?" Barbara asked. "I'll pull up the security footage."

"I've checked everywhere. It's almost as if she vanished out of-"

"Thin air?" Mary finished. Everyone stopped and stared at the youngest in the room.

"You don't think that-" Mary cut her father off.

"Yeah, I actually do."

"Mary and Damian, you two know Royal the best, come with me and see if we can pick up anything a trial at the most." Bruce ordered as he started walking towards the Bat-mobile.

Mary didn't look all to sure, "This is weird. She hasn't hit Gotham, actually, from the file it looked as if she were avoiding it."

"I would avoid it, too if I were kidnapping kids and the world's greatest detective lived in Gotham." Stephanie snorted.

Luke looked justifiably confused. "Who? Who do you think took my sister? What are you talking about?" No one seemed to notice the poor young man and continued on with the conversation.

"Mary has a point." Dick pointed out. "We can rightfully assume she knows everything Mary knows. She had to have known that we know the Fox's personally. Why would she go from avoiding us all together to knocking right at our doorstep?"

"We don't have time to figure that out right now. The more time we waste here debating the more evidence is lost." Bruce growled. "Robin, Starling, let's go." The two kids looked at one another before running after the Batman.

They were almost to the Batmobile when what felt like an Earthquake struck the Batcave.

"What the hell!?" Stephanie shouted as the grabbed the rails of the stairs to hold on.

"An Earthquake!?" Tim said. "There hasn't been any activity in the seismic reports lately!"

"You check those?!" Stephanie asked. "You're such a nerd!"

"Excuse me, if I don't what another surprise like the last earthquake in Gotham!" Tim yelled back.

"Guys, Something's happening to Mary!" Cassandra called out, pointing to the young girl who began to look like static that covered televisions back when they used those old antennas.

"What's happening to me!" Starling cried. Her whole body felt weird as the shaking in the cave didn't stop. Then suddenly she vanished.

"Starling!" Robin cried as he jumped towards the open spot she had just been occupying, but he was too late. "She's gone." He said, and not a second later the same static like coloring covered his body, and he too was gone.

"Damian!" Dick shouted.

"Everybody grab onto someone else!" Bruce yelled to everyone. "It's transporting us somewhere. If we're touching we might end up in the same place!" Everyone nodded. Quickly, Batman grabbed onto Luke, Dick grabbed onto Stephanie, Tim grabbed onto Alfred, and Cassandra grabbed onto Jason, and In pairs they all began to disappear.

Mary Grayson found herself suddenly standing in the middle of Downtown Gotham City, in her Starling uniform. Shocked and unsure of what just took place she rushed into the closet alley, and put on her domino mask, hoping no one saw her that could identify her. It was the middle of the day, and Starling had no clue what was happening.

She remembered the tremors, and she remembered Damian running towards her, then she was Downtown. Mary swore realizing that she needed to get back home. Her father and Jason were probably pitching a fit trying to find her. Pulling out her grappling hook from her belt Starling fired it off into the distance, taking herself into the air traveling above the street.

Pushing her comm link, Starling called the Batcave, "Starling to Batcave, Come in." Static. "Starling to anyone? Hello? Can anyone read me? Batman? Nightwing? Hood? Oracle?...Robin?" Static still. Starling would have panicked had not Jason taught her to stay calm in such situations. Whatever happened to her must have happened to the rest, and also must have turned off their comms. Thanking X'hal, Starling breathed a little easier knowing that she was in Gotham meaning the others probably weren't too far off. She rushed to the Batcave, if she got there before anyone else she might be able to start doing scans and find out what exactly caused them to change locations like that.

Then Starling heard a gasp.

In honesty, if she had normal human hearing she wouldn't have heard it all, but this gasp of surprise made her look back. It was a woman staring up at Starling with a slight fear. A phone in her hand as she began dialing a number. That's when Starling realized that more and more people were staring at her in awe.

This was...new?

Most Gothamites didn't even blink an eye at a masked person, especially one with a familiar signal on their chest, flying around the city, but they were taking such an interest in Starling that it set her on edge. Starling realized at the moment that Gotham looked slightly different.

It was still the Gotham she knew, it had the same feeling, and smelled the same and everything, but it was cleaner... Too clean to be Gotham. Not a speck of litter on the ground. The City sounded different, too. No sounds of distant yelling at spouses, or even children laughing in the park. Gotham for once in it's entire existence was quiet, and Starling didn't like that at all. This had to be Gotham she knew it was, but...

Flying over the park finally disputed her idea that she was home. Sitting in the middle of the city a statue, a statue that wasn't there before. A statue to commemorate a hero, the city's hero. However, this was not a statue of Batman, or Nightwing, or anyone else stationed in Gotham instead it was Superman. A superman with an expression on his face that just seemed off to Starling. She was in Gotham alright, just not her Gotham.

"I don't think we're in Kansas anymore, Toto..." She said to no one in particular.

* * *

Damian Wayne, like Mary, found himself in the middle of a city, one he didn't know. He looked around and took notice of the city. Flying cars, Moving sidewalks, people with terrible, but new, fashion statements... He could confirm it, He was in the future. God damn it, how he hated time travel. Putting on his mask so not to not disturb whatever piece of the space time continuum was left and began running. He needed to find a way back to his time before something happened. something that could erase the existence of people he cared about. Cursing up a storm he needed to find some cloths that fit in better, It wouldn't be an issue stealing from some random store.

"Hey You!" Someone cried out, "Impersonating, law officials like Robin is illegal! If you know what's good for ya' you'll take off that mask and let me give you a ticket." It was a girl in this techno futuristic punk outfit. Hair in pigtails, and colored orange. Robin took notice of the body armor, lightweight almost looked like kevlar, but from where he stood it didn't look like had to be about 17, maybe 18. The girl looked like a bad guy with the gun holsters attached to her hips, except one thing. The bat insignia on the left side of her chest, and the dark colored googles blocking her face.

"Impersonating?" Robin asked.

"Yeah. And don't try the whole 'I'm actually Robin' thing on me. I actually know the current Robin, and you're not him boy, so take your ticket, and pay the fine."

Robin snorted, "I don't have time for this." Throwing down some smoke pellets, he disappeared in the smoke screen on his grapple line only to soon find himself falling back down to the ground. With a quick twist, Robin landed safely without breaking anything but he definitely would be bruised in the morning.

"What are you some kinda golden days fan? No one has used lines like that in 80 years. If I didn't know any better I would say that you were actually…." She paused as she stared at him. As if she were really looking at him for the first time. "That Robin insignia…." Her words failed her again. "You can't be."

"I can't be what?" Robin challenged.

"Damian Wayne, the fifth Robin. It's impossible. Time and dimension travel are illegal. You have to be a dopplegänger of some kind, or-"

"How the hell you know my real name!?"

The girl looked taken aback, "This isn't good. I better call the commander before" Before she could call anyone Robin reached out and before she could stop him grabbed her communicator out of her ear.

"You're not calling anyone till I know what the hell is going on." She only stared at him again, but gravely this time.

"Do you know where you are?"

Robin snorted, "No. I wouldn't be dealing with you if I did."

"Okay, How 'bout what year it is?"

"Well, last I checked not this one. Obviously." He rolled his eyes.

"Final question." she said."If you really are Damian Wayne, then you'll know this. And I'll take you to the Batcave to find out what happened to bring you here, but if you get it wrong I take you to the GCPD. Got it?" Damian nodded.

"Okay, there's a clock in the main office of the manor, what time would it say right now?" She asked. If Robin weren't who he said he was, he might have gotten it wrong, but how could he forget one of the first things he father told him when he was first became Robin. So he answered without hesitation.

"10:48." The girl only smiled at his answer.

"It really is you!" She practically squealed, "This is so whipped. I can't wait to rub it into Solomon's face!" She ranted. She stuck out her hand. "I'm Nighttrix, by the way. Welcome to New Gotham."

* * *

Starling was right about the bad feeling she got about the citizens staring at her because now she was being chased. Actually pursued would be the better word. They had almost caught her, cutting her line, and if not for her acrobatic skills she would have fallen to her death, but instead she and enough time to trap a flag pole and flip to the next roof, and to safety. She were still on her tail though. She hadn't even gotten one look at them. They hid expertly in the shadows, and it was the day! She cursed that she was so horrible in stealth that she couldn't hide from them, but one thing Starling could do was out run them.

It was Jason's first lesson, "Live to fight another day, and Run." He made her run for countless hours on hours. Made sure that she could not only outrun him, but anyone else for that matter. He figured that since she sucked so much at stealth, speed and stamina, would make up for it. And it did. It saved her life multiple times, and was saving her's again right now. Starling's stamina was already better then normal humans, but under Jason's training, she could outlast even her father in a marathon, no stopping.

Running was her only plan seeing as she couldn't lead her two assailants back toward the Batcave. She needed to make a plan quick before her pursuers came up with one to keep her from running. Looking back she realized they had, as one of two of them had vanished.

They planned to cut her off.

It was a simple, but effective plan... If the person you were chasing wasn't already knowledgeable on every play in the book. So when Starling came to the end of instead of just normally jumping across, she kicked, and sent the person trying to catch her, flying across the gap landing on the other roof harshly. With a roll, Starling cleared the gap, and got up to finally see her assailant. To her shock, it was someone she knew, someone she trusted.

"Selina?!" She said with a gasp. Starling almost didn't have time to dodge the shrunken that flew at her coming from the other person chasing her. She didn't even think she just ran. Behind her, her the other person stopped to check on the mildly hurt Catwoman.

"You okay?" He said offering a hand to her.

"I'm fine, she just knocked the wind out of me." Catwoman her ribs where Starling had landed her kick.

"She's good." He observed. "Young, but good."

Catwoman groaned as she stretched out a bit, "Yeah, and I think I know why…"

With a raised eyebrow that Selina used admire on another man he questioned her words.

"That girl, those flips. It was like seeing Dick in action again, and she looked so much like-"

"Supergirl could fly. That girl could have left us in the dust if she were really Supergirl" He cut her off Harshly. "Besides, She would be 20 this year, not what? 11? That is if she weren't dead."

"Damian…" Selina started, but he raised a hand ending the conversation. With a sigh Selina changed the subject. "Okay, Nightwing, what do we do from here?"

"They way she was running, she's probably long gone by now." He said.

"It was probably nothing, but I think we should still check _his_ old places. If it were her. She's be heading to _him_."

"And if it isn't her?" Nightwing growled.

"Then sue me for at least trying." Catwoman folded her arms across her chest and rolled her eyes, "God, you're so serious. You're so much like Bruce it's ridiculous." He glared at her harder.

"So you keep saying."

"Listen, this is the only lead we've got. If it doesn't pan out, I'll call Victor to do a search." Catwoman said, talking to this kid was not easy. He was far too old for her to be pacifying his ass.

"Fine, we'll start with he sewers, it's the closest entrance to the batcave that I know of. If she's going there, that's the route she'll take." Nightwing said walking away.

"There we go progress. Let's get this finished, I wanna be back on the watch tower with the kid by dinner time."

* * *

Most things fail to impress Damian Wayne, this was not one of them.

The Batcave was bigger, better then it ever was before. It was almost like a hub of masked heroes with bat-themes, all in one place all working, discussing with one another, training, sparring. It was like the league's Watchtower, but for Bats and Bats only.

"Rookie!" A Voice called out, Nightrix turned and a young boy, in a Robin uniform about 8 years in age came running towards her. "Rookie, you're back!"

"Robin!" She paused remembering she now had two people going by the same name. Then groaned, " No real names in the cave! How many times do I have to remind you."

The boy grinned, "Only a few more!" He turned to Damian, "Is this him, The 5th Robin, the 3rd Batman, Creator of the second incarnation of the-"

"Hold it, Grant. We don't know where he's from if he's from the past it could mess up our timeline. You know that."

The boy, Grant, frowned. "You broke the no real names rule."

"Whatever, go tell The Commander we're here. Get Batgirl, and Nightwing while you're at it. " The boy nodded and ran off. "Sorry about him. He just became Robin. He's a little excited."

Robin shrugged, "So…Rookie?" He asked. The girl blushed, embarrassed.

"It's a nickname." She sighed, "I know you're name so it's only fair you know mine." taking off her dark colored goggles she showed her face to him. It wasn't anything else that stuck out to him but her eyes, she had his father's eyes…His eyes. "I'm Victoria Wayne, but everyone just calls me Rookie." She stuck her hand out. "And this is The Batcave, HQ to Batman Incorporated."

"Batman Incorporated… It's defunct, in my time." Damian said.

"Defunct?" She asked. "That can't be right…" She said after thinking for a moment. "Come on, the Commander is probably ready for us. He'll know what's going on."

Nightrix lead Robin up the stairs to what looked to be an office in the Batcave. It was a closed of room from the rest which was pretty much an open area. Inside behind a desk was an elderly gentlemen, about 70 years in age. He wore a black suit, and Robin didn't know any better he would have thought he was looking at an elderly Bruce.

"I'm going out on a limb here, and guess that you aren't my father." Robin said sarcastically.

The old man chuckled, "I can see the wit wasn't something that came with age, Damian."

"You know me"

"I know my version of you. The Damian Wayne currently standing in front of me is a another dimension's Damian." Nightrix gasped.

"We're related." It was a statement not a question. Robin was only stating the obvious.

The Commander nodded, "I'm Terry McGinnis, you're half brother."

Damian scoffed, "He actually had other kids after me. I find that hard to believe."

"Believe me, that's a story for another time, Damian. Just know you shouldn't have to worry about it for a long time. If things turn out the same way." The old man smiled fondly at the 13 year old. "We need to find out what brought you here, and then send you home."

"That shouldn't be an issue." Nightrix spoke, "I have Batgirl looking into it. Nightwing, as well. Those too geniuses will find something. I'm sure of it."

As she poke the words two blonde masked young adults came running into the room. "Commander! Commander!"

"Amanda, Nick. Did you find out what's caused our friend here to end up in our care." The elderly Terry asked.

"Not only that!" They said in unison.

"It's bad, Commander." Batgirl started.

"Terrible. We were able to find out what caused Robin here to be displaced." Nightwing finished.

"We can send him home, but-"

"That's not the issue-"

"It's Batman!" They said at the same time again. "Batman's gone!"

* * *

Gotham sewers were still Gotham Sewers. Starling thanked god for that. Whatever this weird place was it still had some parts that were like Gotham. Sadly, Starling figured she must be in some kind of alternate world version of Gotham. It was the only way to explain that giant superman statue she saw. Well, it could have been worse. She could have been stuck in a world with zombies...or vampires...or vampire zombies.

Slapping her palm to her foreword, Starling sent such thoughts away. Now was not the time. She needed to find someone she trusted, someone who could help her, but in an alternate world who could she trust?

Her best bet was finding some sort of familiar ground, and right now that was the Batcave. From there she could learn anything and anything she needed to know about this universe. She just prayed that this universe's Batman wasn't evil... or at least wasn't home. Then track down someone who could help her out, and find a way home. Since this place obviously wasn't it.

A noise made Starling stop in her tracks.

So, it was Selina she had seen back there chasing her. Starling thought she had hit her head or something. Selina in a costume she had never seen before, those claws, that corset...It wasn't at all like the Selina she knew. The Selina that had given her a kitten for her 9th birthday. Selina would never attack her. Or at least her Selina would never attack her. Starling thought grimly. There might not even be a Mary Grayson for her to know in the universe. This Selina would attack her if that were the case.

And since it were Selina that would mean that her path to the Batcave was no longer as secret as Starling had first hoped. Finding the closet exit, Starling climbed out of the sewers, there were more than enough entrances for her chose from. Ones that Starling knew Catwoman had no knowledge about. Sadly, it seemed that she wouldn't ever make it to the Batcave. Before she could even fully pull herself out from the manhole, a foot meet with Starling's face harshly knocking her out cold.

Standing before her was a Nightwing, though not the one she was familiar with. A different Nightwing, a darker one.

Waking up after being knocked out was never a good thing. It was either she had been captured(again) by the enemy, or she had been knocked out while sparring(That usually meant two days of ridicule by who ever took her down). This was the first option. The first thing she noticed was she was no longer wearing her mask. Great... Well, let's just hope she wasn't ruining this version of Mary Grayson's Life if there was one. Also, her utility belt was gone.

"Good, You're awake. Tell us who you are!" Or not. Mary rolled her eyes. A man and Catwoman stood before her. The thing about this man was that he was also masked, and wearing her father's uniform. How rude, she had been captured far too many times just to do as he says just because he sounded a whole lot like Bruce. Except like Bruce if he still in his 20's, not to mention this fake Nightwing guy kinda had Bruce's chin, and cheek bones, and shaped face. Still, unless this was a universe where Selina was still in her 40's and Bruce was in his 20's, Mary didn't think that was Bruce.

Mary laughed, "You must not have gotten anything from facial recognition software." She figured out. "Or else you would have started this out in a different way." She paused to give him a smug look. "So, why would I tell you my real name, Nightwing. I wore the mask for a reason, after all. It's kinda hypocritical for you to even ask me. You don't hear me asking who you are underneath that mask." Catwoman snorted in amusement causing Nightwing to glare even harder. Mary almost sighed in relief, at least this version of Selina had her sense of humor.

"Cute, but that won't-"

"You really think I'm cute! My daddy says i'm the cutest girl this side of the Milky Way. I've also had a Green Lantern agree with that statement. If I'm so cute how about letting me go?" Starling batted her eyelashes at him. Now Catwoman was holding back a laugh, and Nightwing was almost growling at her.

"I don't think so."

Starling shrugged, "It was definitely worth a shot." Oh, she had this Nightwing practically heated. Finally, a snickering Catwoman took over the interrogation.

"You must know that wearing a mask like that is worth about 10 years in juvenile reeducation. So why put on this get up?"

Mary snorted, "Actually, I wouldn't know that. I know nothing more than you know, Selina." Catwoman lend back in surprise at the use of her real name. The thing was in this world Mary had no allies, so she had to make some. That meant taking chances. "You see I'm not from this world. I'm from a different universe all together, one alternate to this one, and I need some help getting home. And You two are my best bet right now."

* * *

"What do you mean Batman is gone." Terry McGinnis growled, so eerily like Robin's father that Robin did a double take.

"We were tracking down the disturbance that we think caused the dimensional quake and we tracked it's origins to Star Labs." Batgirl started.

"That's when we remembered that about 2 hours ago when the shift happened, Batman was called out there for a break in." Nightwing finished. Robin guessed they were twins by the way they finished each other sentences.

"Batman never checked back in."

"We tried his homing beckon, and-"

"It came back inconclusive."

Terry raised an eyebrow obviously not as annoyed as Damian was with the whole finishing each other's sentence deals. "That mean's he's not in our universe."

"You got it, Boss." They said at the same time. Damian wanted to slam his head against the wall.

"You think something happened there to cause the quake?" Nightrix asked.

The twins looked at one another, "TDT was destroyed." They said at the same time.

"It's the reason we didn't destroy the TDTs in the first place." Batgirl said, "The shock wave from destroying them could have easily caused a quake that could displace multiple people through out... Oh."

Nightwing rolled his eyes at the same time Robin did, "Well, that explains what happened to me."

"So now we have two jobs to do." Terry McGinnis started, "First thing first, Nightwing and Batgirl, I want you two working on a way to get Robin and his family back to their original worlds. It means building another TDT, but this one will remain a classified secret down here in the Cave. Second, I'm calling the league. The only other TDT is on the Watch Tower. I'm also calling in the Red Hood and Black Bat to stage a rescue mission for Batman-"

"Commander," Nightrix cut him off. "With all due respect, sir. I would like to rescue Batman."

Terry raised an eyebrow at the young teenager, "Victoria, this is going to be extremely dangerous, and I would rather you stay here-"

"Sir, Batman, is my partner. It's only fair that I go save him." she said. It seemed that Terry didn't like being cut off twice because his mouth was now pressed in a firm tight line.

"You are not his partner anymore. You gave that up when you gave up being Robin. Now, our Robin can not go as he is still to untrained for a mission such as this one. And I need you here in the City."

"And I need to go rescue Christian." NIghtrix fought back. "Batman, isn't just my partner. This is my brother we're talking about, and if anybody is bringing him home it's me. I'm not asking for permission, Commander."

The old Terry stared at Nightrix intently, then sighed. It seemed he was a lot more open to other suggestions then Bruce. "Fine, go. But you can't go alone. Find someone, or you don't go at all."

"What!" She exclaimed, "Come on, Uncle Terry. You know the only people available are Red Hood or Black Bat."

"I also know that you're too prideful to ask them for help. So it's either one of them, or stay in Gotham. Choose." He ordered. Nightrix bit her lip unsure of what to do. She couldn't go back to Black Bat or Red Hood after they said she wouldn't make it solo. It seemed Terry was more like Bruce then Damian originally gave him credit for, Bruce always got his way in the end too, but not this time.

"I'll go with her." Robin spoke up. The group turned to him.

"I don't think so." Nightwing and Batgirl said, even Nightrix looked unsure of the idea.

"I can go with her."

"In all honesty, I don't see a reason why you can't go with her, Damian." Terry said. "The new TDT won't be built for hours, and we'll need that time to look for your family. Are you sure you don't want to stay here and help with that?" Terry asked.

Robin snorted, "They can take care of themselves. I'm curious to see who had the gall to kidnap a Batman. I'm guessing that's still not an easy feat."

Terry turned to Nightrix, "If you want, take him with you. He's well trained, smart, a perfect fighter. I see no reason why this partnership shouldn't work out."

Nightrix still looked unsure, but the legendary Damian Wayne sure as hell beat her annoyingly perfect cousins any day. "Fine. Make the call, Commander, we're going to go rescue Batman."

* * *

"You're from another world. Why the hell should we believe that?" Nightwing snorted.

"Because you know it's possible, and that because it's really the only explanation for me knowing so much about you guys. I mean come on. "

"Okay, say we believe you. How do we know you aren't just some elaborate plan to over the government." Catwoman asked. Mary paused. That was a little extreme and paranoid...even for them. This had something to do with the giant Superman Statue she saw in the park. Something was going on in this world.

"I just wanna get home, but if you guys feel comfortable turning in a hard working, innocent, 11 year old go right ahead. I can either find a way home with or without your help. Make it easier on yourselves, and just help me."

Nightwing and Catwoman exchanged a glance, "And you really are from another reality? You know us."

Mary nodded, "Yes, and in that world you two would help me." The new NIghtwing she had a few guesses as to who he was now, just a few. "Tell me that it's the same in this one." Catwoman's face told Mary she had convinced. Nightwing next to her was going to be a little harder. He's eyes still regarded her with a cold look. "Please, you're my Nightwing's successor, I think. What would he do in this situation?" Mary asked him. It was slight she could barely see it in his body language, but there it was, his resolve failing, and with a sigh he nodded his head in agreement.

"Fine. We'll help you, but you've got to promise us one thing." Mary nodded. One promise, she could easily keep that. "No matter how different this world is from your own, you can't interfere with our status quo, got that?" He asked. Mary nodded again. "Good. Tt, let's get out of here then. Catwoman untie her."

Mary said nothing, only gapping at the man in front of her... All of her guess about who this Nightwing were had just been proven wrong.

Nightwing gave her a confused look, "What are you staring at me like that for?"

She stood up(Now that she was able to), and pointed at him like she didn't know what kind of a creature he was.

"What?"

"You!" She shouted, "I know who you are now!" She growled at him, "You're Damian! Damian Wayne! How did I miss that! You have Bruce's jaw line. I'm a disgrace!"

"Umm, how-?" He was about to ask how she knew him, but she cut him off.

"You still do that "Tt" thing. I put up with that every day from Robin, and you're him! You're Damian. I'm going to have to apologize to him about saying how ugly he would look with longer hair! I can't believe this! I-" Catwoman placed a hand over her mouth cutting off the rest of the girl's rant.

"We can talk about this later." She said wisely. "Nightwing, it be best for you to take her. I've got monitor duty. It be suspicious if I didn't go."

Nightwing snorted, "It'd be suspicious if you actually showed up... But I see your point I'll watch the kid."

"I still can't believe you're Damian! I wish you would have told me that earlier!" She stuck out her hand to Nightwing, "I'm Mary Grayson. In my world you're my partner in the field. So, I know I can trust you to get me home. I can always trust you."

Nightwing took her hand and shook, "This world maybe different then the one you know."

* * *

The spare TDT that was thankfully in the safe hands of Batman incorporated was operational. The twins, Nightwing and batgirl, handed the Time-Dimension Transport to Nightrix and gave the 17 year old a glare and a threat about what could happen if anything happened it about how they would kick her ass, and other obscenities were traded from there. When they were done the blonde and freckled Batgirl, that reminded him so much of Stephanie in appearance, gave him a hug, and promised that her and her brother would have his family safe and sound very soon. He didn't understand the gesture, he didn't know this Batgirl, and he had confidence that she could get them back so as to why she felt the need to reassure him was something that Damian just didn't understand.

"You ready?" Nightrix asked him.

Damian snorted, "Of course."

"Then Let's jam," She pointed the TDT and pushed the trigger activating it, creating a portal in front of them.

"Damian," A call from Terry stopped the two from continuing on into the portal. "Show'em how it's done in the old school." He grinned at the Robin. Damian gave his own cocky grin back to him. What ever new things they may have discovered in this universe, Damian was sure they had never seen anything like him. With that the two were gone, into the unknown to find Batman.

Damian wasn't going to lie, traveling dimensions felt weird, like a tingling sensation he couldn't describe nor compare to anything else he had experienced. One minute he was walking into the portal and next he was standing a dilapidated underground cave.

"We're here." Nightrix stated the obvious.

"Where ever here is."Robin Taking in his surroundings. "I thought we were going to end up in the cave? This isn't the cave." He asked confused. This was a cave, but not the batcave he knew.

Nightrix looked confused as well, "It should have!" She began banging the TDT with the palm of her hand. "Damn thing must be wrecked!"

"Wait," Damian grabbed her arm stopping Nightrix 's abuse of the machine. "Batgirl promised that the machine worked. She wouldn't let us leave with it malfunctioning. You've got something for us to check location?" He asked.

"Yeah," She pulled out some sort of small hand-held tablet from her utility belt. "But this place isn't the Batcave. No matter what universe no one would leave it looking like this!" She was right. The place was destroyed. Nothing in it all resembled the cave in any aspect. Nothing in it's destroyed debris left any indication that it were the place once created by Bruce Wayne as the base from where he would change Gotham.

"So what does it say?" Robin asked. In the Rubble something shined and caught his eye. Robin moved towards it and started removing the rubble.

"I can't get a good signal!" She said exasperated. "For all we know we're probably not even in Gotham! I swear I'll kill both Amanda and Nicholas! They couldn't even tell the damn thing was broken. I swear to god if we're not even in the right dimension, and I can't find my brother, I'll-"

"Nightrix!" Robin called. She stopped her rant and walked over to where Robin beckoned her. "Look." He ordered. In his hands was something familiar that they both knew. it was only a piece of it, but it was unmistakable it was a piece of the giant penny from the Batcave.

"This can't be..."

"We both know that it is...As much as we don't want to admit it." Robin said showing a maturity beyond his 13 years. "Something is wrong in this universe Let's find your Batman and get out."

Nightrix nodded, "Our TDT can track the other even if it's broken. Where ever it is my brother is there." She sneered at the scene before her. "I've got a bad feeling about this place, too. Let's get this done quickly."

* * *

"Soooo," Mary dragged out her words, "This where you live now?" She asked awkwardly. This Damian was a lot like her own, but different in many ways. If possible it seemed his temper has gotten shorter and he often shot her glares for simple questions she asked and phrases she said. If she were honest with herself she could swear that this Damian didn't like her. Actually everything in his words, his body language, and what he didn't say said so much to Mary. He was very stiff, always stiff, even now in his home. Most people usually relaxed a little when entering their home, but this Damian didn't. Her's did. It was usually simple the way his shoulders loosened a little when they got back to the batcave after a long night of patrol, or how his expression wasn't as guarded when they got home from school. So it was odd for her to witness this Damian be so different then her's Her Damian only acted this way when he was hiding something from her.

"Yeah..." He knew what her next question was going to be, and that was the reason Mary choose to stay silent. If this Damian were anything like her own she could find out more by snooping then asking him anything. He made her promise not try and change this world no matter different it was from her's, and Mary planned to keep that promise, but this place interested her. It was different yet very much the same, and she wanted to know more about it.

"Okay, Mary. I have to patrol tonight. You need to stay here."

Mary raised an eyebrow at him, "I thought you patrolled already today?"

"Yeah, but Catwoman has monitor duty tonight so I'm going to be the only one in Gotham. Here's the phone order some pizza or something. Money's on the table. Towels are in the closet by the bathroom which is next to my room, now I'm going to sleep for the next few hours before I have to patrol." Damian almost expected the young girl to want to come patrol with him, but she stayed silent.

"Okay, but if you're going to be free all night. What am I going to do? I hate being bored. I can't just sit here idle." She told him. He sighed she was right. He couldn't ask an 11 year old girl to sit in a house with nothing to do with hours on end. He didn't have books, nor television. He almost panicked till Mary asked, "You got a laptop?"

"Yeah, I do." He walked into his room and came out with it in his hands. "Here." He handed it to her. He noticed she didn't even bother asking for the password.

"Thanks. This will do!" She sounded excited at the prospect of being online all night. Her smile faded. Damian smirked you could almost see all her thoughts on her face, "...There's still youtube in this universe, right?" Damian smirked again. This was the closet he's come to laughing since Supergirl died.

"Yes, there is. I'm going to sleep call me if you needed anything." It was almost like things were how they were before the war. Almost. And it felt good.

The moment Damian shut the door to his room, Mary made quick work on his computer. It didn't take but two seconds to break into his password(Like really? It was Bruce's mother's full name). Next she was surfing the web, she searched for herself first, but there was no record of her anywhere that she could find. She began to wonder if she existed at all in this universe till she found a name in her father's public records.

Mari Anders-Grayson.

That was as close as she was going to get to finding herself. From there is she could find a birth certificate, indicating that this person, Mari Anders-Grayson was the daughter of one, Richard John Grayson and a Kori Anders. Yup, Mary could now confirm that this was this universe version of herself...However that was pretty much all she could find. After the age of 8 all public record of Mari Anders-Grayson disappears right after a divorce between Dick Grayson and and Kori. Mary couldn't even find who got custody of the child.

Deciding she might find more in her father's records she went back to them, checking them over to make sure that they were the same facts that she knew.

_Born: March 20, 19**_

check

_Birth Parents: John and Mary Grayson_

check

_Adoptive father: Bruce Wayne_

Okay, another check

_Date of death: August 25, 20**_

Holy plot twist, Batman! Not a check! Not a check! Mary stared at the screen wondering if she saw correctly. When she finally convinced herself she wasn't hallucinating she almost couldn't breath.

Her father..._dead?_

It didn't seem like something that could ever happen to him. He was too smart, too careful, too amazing to die. Mary prayed that it was a sickness that took him out painlessly as she searched for the cause of death.

_Cause of death: Cervical Fracture_

What! Mary couldn't believe it. Her father died from a broken neck. Someone had the gotten the drop on Dick Grayson long enough to snap his neck. No, she refused to believe it. She couldn't. It couldn't be true.

In a frantic panic Mary searched for her other family members.

_Jason Todd: Deceased_

_Timothy Drake-Wayne:Deceased_

_Stephanie Brown: Deceased_

_Helena Bertinelli: Deceased_

_Alfred Pennyworth: Deceased_

She held her breathe as she typed in a name.

_Cassandra Cain-Wayne: Unknown_

Mary let out a sigh of relief as she typed another name.

_Barbara Gordon: Unknown_

She typed in the last name hoping and praying that her hunch was right.

_Bruce Wayne: Alive_

Mary almost wished she hadn't looked. Curiosity would be her undoing one day. What had happened in this world that it ended up so different than the one she knew? How come most of the people she knew were dead. She couldn't handle this knowledge. Was this going to be in her universe's future? Would things play out like this? Where the side of good has been put into a shallow grave? Mary needed to know what changed. What happened to create this monstrosity so could stop it from ever happening. She searched the history for the last ten years, and everything came into light. Joker killing Lois Lane and her unborn child with the whole metropolis. Among the casualties were Timothy Drake-Wayne and his fiancée , Stephanie Brown. They were visiting some family friends while the young Wayne Tech heir did business in metropolis that fateful day. Superman and Batman go to war over how to stop evil in the world. Superman needed to control everything now that his life was a cracked shadow of what it could have been. In the war they lose Helena, Alfred, and Jason. Barbara and Cassandra now fugitives, running from Superman's unstoppable regime.

It almost seemed like something only a nightmare could dream up. Superman going crazy. Batman's identity revealed to the world. The deaths of so many including, Green Arrow, Black Canary, Batwoman, John constantine, Supergirl. It was unbelievable, and she was staying in the house with one of Superman's murdering regime members. She couldn't...

He Knew! Mary thought angrily. It was the reason he made her promise to not change anything, but what could she do to fix this world anyway? And what ever happened to Mari Anders-Grayson? It seemed plausible that since Mary couldn't find anymore info about Kori Anders either that after the divorce Starfire took her daughter back to Tamaran. Mary breathed out in relief. That meant that this version of herself was probably alive and on Tamaran, but at what cost? The only family that she's ever known has been killed in this universe. She felt disgusted that she was actually relieved that she lived.

Questions, however, still needed answering. Bruce was alive somewhere, and was alone fighting to save this universe from the tyranny from Superman. She had to help him somehow. Her promise made to Damian no longer standing with the weight of this world's free will now in her hands. She had to do something. She couldn't stay and fight in this world, no but should could still do something to help Batman even if she didn't quite know what that was yet. She had to do something and that something was find Batman.

Mary looked around, going back out in costume would be like putting a red flag saying here "HERE I AM SUPERMAN" on her back. Instead she removed the cape and skirt leaving only the tight kevlar top, her black and purple leggings, and her soundless combat boots. Still the Winged symbol on the chest was much causing Mary to poke around Damian's coat closet finding a hoodie far too large for her to wear over it.

Mary deleted her internet history quickly before grabbing the pizza money from the table and leaving the place looking as if she had never been there.

The Regime's Damian Wayne awoke an hour later with the sundown, and the girl long gone.

* * *

To say that Gotham wasn't what either of them had expected was an understatement. The once beautiful City was in Ruins. Broken glass from windows littered the streets. The people sat around oil drum fires in worn down clothing, and starving animals were fighting over the meat of other dead animals in streets. It was as if someone had replaced Gotham city with a young adults novel of a post apocalyptic town. The road was giving away with cracks and pot holes underneath there feet, and almost all of the buildings were abandoned. It would be one thing if this were the ghetto, but this was downtown Gotham right in front of Wayne Tower that looked as to be the only thing that hadn't changed in the city.

"What the hell?" Nightrix was in as much distress about the city's appearance as Robin was.

"Took the words right out of my mouth." Robin responded. "But we don't have time to rave and wonder what the hell happened to the City."

Nightrix nodded, "You're right. Finding my Batman is our main priority." She pulled out the TDT and took a look at it's screen. "The signal looks to be coming from Wayne Tower. That's where the TDT is and that's where we'll find my brother. Let's hurry and get the hell-"

"Shush." Robin quieted her as he listened in. He was hearing something.

"What are you-" Nightrix paused as she too began hearing what Robin was hearing. Footsteps. Lots of footsteps heading in their direction. It grew louder and louder the closer it they got. Eventually, the people around them began to hear the footsteps. Soon the streets were deserted of people and animals. They ran in fear at what ever was coming.

"Move!" Nightrix ordered quickly as she grabbed Robin and hightailed it away to the closest hiding place with a view of the street, which happened to be behind a very large pile of garbage.

"Worst hiding place ever." Robin complained. "You're just like Starling. She picks places in hurry without thinking too."

Nightrix glared at the young 13 year old boy, "If you got a better place that we can get to in time with this good of a view then let's go because I think they're already here!" She said in an angry whisper. "Who would have thought the great Damian Wayne was such a Nit." She whispered under her breathe.

"What did you say about me!"

"Shush!" Nightrix pushed him down so that they could only pick through the crevices in between the black bags of garbage. In front of them and army began marching down the road into the middle of downtown Gotham. An army of children. Robin couldn't believe his eyes, children ranging from the ages of 5 to 18 marching down the streets decked out in a red in black uniform carrying automatic weapons down the vacated streets. The surprising part was they were marching in perfect unison. These children were disciplined and trained. Which Robin knew made them dangerous even if they were young.

In the center riding on some sort of platform vehicle reminiscent of a parade float was what looked to be the head honcho in charge. Her uniform was all red and militaristic in style. Her posture was picture perfect of that of a soldier, obviously one of high ranking by the number of stars and accents adorned on the uniform. With the enhancements of his mask, Robin could make out the name Scarlett on the Tag. The female general was named scarlet how fitting of her child army decked in red.

"Looks like they're heading to Wayne Tower." Robin noticed.

"That's going to be a problem. That much security's going to make it more challenging to get in." She turned to Robin, "History said you always like a challenge."

"History was right. Let's go. Access tunnels underneath Wayne Tower should still be a secret. We can get in from there." They both turned to run to find the closely entrance to the tunnel only to find a person standing at the other end of alley leaning against the wall of the building casually flipping a knife in his hands.

"You must be new here." He said, not looking up at the two. "Everyone knows the Tunnels are a no go."

Robin shot the guy a glare, narrowing his eyes at him, "What are you talking about?"

"The Red Queen has had the tunnels gassed with and odorless poisonous gas since she came into power. People who have tried them have died before they could even lay eyes on her royal majesty. " He said the words royal majesty sarcastically with a roll of his eyes. "You can go ahead if you want..." He drifted off, "But I wouldn't. Other then the gas there are a bunch of other traps she placed to kill her would be assassins."

"We're not assassins." Said Nightrix. The man snorted.

"Obviously, anyone here to kill the Red Queen would know that." He studied the two for a moment. "And guessing by the getups you ain't just thrill seekers either."

"Who are you?" Robin questioned.

"Name's Bertinelli. Antonio Bertinelli. Gothamite born and raised. And the leader of the White Knights."

"White Knights? Some kind of group?"

"Resistance." He answered, "and I think we're the answers to each others problems."

Robin snorted, "What problem?"

"The kind that you dimension traveling people always have." He said to the shock of both Nightrix and Robin. "The Red Queen has something you want... Now I can get you in if you do The White Knights a small, tiny, insignificant favor."

Robin didn't trust this man. He seemed sleazy. The easy-going personality, coupled with the fact that this world already had him on edge. Robin didn't trust the young man at all.

"What kind of favor?" Starling asked. Knowing the leery smile on the guy it would be the exact opposite small.

He grinned at them like the cheshire cat, "You kill the Red Queen, and free the world from her Red Regime."

* * *

The first thing Mary did was buy flowers. Damian had left her about 20 dollars, and with that 20 she bought as many bouquets of flowers as she could. She had to. She had to pay her respects before she did anything.

It was windy as Mary walked into the graveyard. The already cold fall air nipping at her, making Mary pull tighter on Damian's hoodie. No, she shook her head. That man she meet wasn't Damian. The Damian she knew would never have worked for Superman, who killed all those people and told the world Batman's secret identity. Except that was it, wasn't it? That wasn't the Damian she knew. She wanted to kick herself for trusting him so readily. She should have known something was off the moment he was chasing her through the streets like he had know idea who she was, but he must have known her. She lived on Earth at a time, but he never mention the Mari Anders-Grayson who was once an Earthling. In fact, he outright hid not only that from her, but the deaths of everyone she knew and loved. He hadn't even felt the need to mention the death of this version of her father. Even though this one wasn't her father, and her father was probably somewhere safe, she had an empathy for the entire situation. She felt betrayed that any incarnation of Damian would do that to her. Would do any of this. This world was an absolute terror created from her worst nightmares.

Finally, she came across the headstone that proved that this sadly was not a nightmare, but how Mary wished it were.

_Richard John Grayson_

The name was carved with such craftsmanship that Mary knew that Bruce had picked it out. The Grave markings was simple, but the headstone was expensive. And the winged symbol that he used to bore was rightfully under his name.

The feeling was surreal. And the notion that really her father could die any of the nights he went out hit Mary like a ton of bricks. One day, Her father could end up like Ryand'r, any of them could end up dead. How childish of her to forget that. She had a brush with death before, yet she had let that weight slip from her shoulders as if it weren't important. That was the third mistake she realized she made today. There weren't rooms for any others. She bent down and placed one of the bouquets down at her feet. They were Forget-Me-Nots. Not many people knew that crime fighter had a favorite flower, but his daughter did. She carefully laid the others down beside their respective graves. Marigolds for Stephanie. Amaryllis for Jason. Red Tea Roses for Tim. One Casablanca Lily for Alfred. He was always such a simple man, and Helena a single Calla Lilly. She grew them in her apartment window. She blew all the money she had on these flowers, but Mary just knew that it had been years since these graves last had a visit, and it was time someone should that they were still loved and remembered. Respecting the dead was something Mary's mother had taught her. Remembering the dead as they were when they lived, was something her father taught her. She took a deep breath, and looked towards the night sky. In X'hal's embrace the night no longer had to protect them. They were safe, and free.

"I knew you'd be here. She came here too when she found out." Mary didn't bother turning around, not even with the revelation that Damian had just told her. It was about time Damian found her. Retrieving internet history after deleting it was child's play for him after all. "So you know..." He trailed off unsure of what to say, or leaving it understood. Mary wasn't quite sure which it was.

"No thanks to you." She shot back but refused to turn around and meet his gaze. He was a traitor, and on Tamaran she would be within her rights to kill him for this slight against their family. However, this wasn't Tamaran, and as much as she would want to she could never kill Damian. No matter what atrocity he committed under Superman's orders. She still needed answers. The internet couldn't answer everything. "What happened to him?" Mary asked tears in her eyes. She needn't say who.

"You know this." He replied with no sympathy. "A cervical Fracture."

She turned to him, anger getting the better of her. It disgusted her how she knew exactly how he was going to answer. He was still so much like Damian, but the demon standing before her wasn't him. "If I wanted the Coroner's Report I would have read it again!" She yelled at him, "You were there that day in Arkham! What happened? I want to know who is responsible for breaking my father's neck!"

He stared at her coldly, "Why? Will it help you any to know how a man whom you don't know died?"

"He's my father!"

"No." He argued. "He isn't. Your father is probably back in your universe trying to get you back home. You don't even know the man lying in that grave, you've never meet him. So explain how will it help to know who killed him."

"It-It" Mary struggled to find the right words, "I just need to know what happened. Please," She begged.

"Do you plan on getting revenge for someone you never meet?" Damian asked.

"No." Her answer was shaky.

"Then why-"

_"Because I just have to know!"_ She screamed at him, "You don't even deserve to wear the symbol on your chest. Working for Superman? Betraying your family? Why Damian?! Explain to me what went so wrong in this world ! Explain to me why my father is dead!" Her cries echoed throughout the empty dark cemetery.

"Do you really want to know?" He asked. "You'd be better off ignorant of what has happened in the this universe." He warned her.

"Yes, I have to know." She told him. "Tell me, please."

He only studied her for a minute taking in everything about her. Her long straight hair that hung down her back whipped wildly in the wind. He took notice to her green eyes so different than how he knew them, so human, brimming with emotion. He took notice of how young she was. He never had the curtesy to know her at this age, but he would know her at any age. Mar'i.

"I killed him." Damian finally said. "I am the one responsible for your father's death." He confessed. He watched the change in her face. Pleading gave way to confusion, and surprise. Then to hurt and betrayal. Yes, he knew this was coming. She wore every emotion on her face like a badge. She couldn't even hide it from him. She said nothing only staring at him with wide eyes. The wind howled between them.

"I ask again," Damian started, "Now that you know, What do you plan on doing?" He could almost see every thought passing through her head. Finally, she took of running in the opposite direction.

"Don't follow me!" She screamed the order as she ran out of sight. Surprisingly, he did as she asked. Mary couldn't even stand to look him in the face. Tears streamed down her face. Damian practically worshipped her father. He respected him more so than he did his own father, and to kill him... Mary didn't know. Everything was so different yet so similar. She needed... She needed to find Bruce, quickly. She had to make sure what happened here didn't happen again.

When Mary was sure she was far enough, she began to walk. Sticking her hands into the hoodie's front pocket to warm them. She hadn't needed to use them yet. It was as if she just realized how cold it really was. Inside the pocket she felt a paper, she pulled it out to see what it was. She hadn't put anything into the pocket. She pulled out a picture, on the front a woman either in her late teens or early 20's, smiling softly at the camera. Mary stared at the picture flabbergasted, she knew that face. She knew that face because it was her face. Her face with the original Tamaranian eyes she was born with. There was no denying it, this was picture of Mari Anders-Grayson. She was here on earth, at least recently. This pegged the million dollar question. If Mari Anders-Grayson was here on Earth after the divorce...

What happened to Mari Anders-Grayson?

* * *

An abandoned school building is where Antonio Bertinelli had taken the two heroes. Inside was mostly filled with adults, that looked to be refugees. Not a child in sight. The youngest person was Antonio, and no one was even around his age.

"Well, Welcome to the HQ!" Antonio introduced. "Not the prettiest, but it's what we got! From here we fight the Red Queen's tyranny."

"Yeah, we gathered." This whole place left a bad taste in Nightrix's mouth.

"Sorry to disappoint, Bertinelli, but we don't kill. We're not you're assassin's." Robin told him firmly crossing his arms over his chest.

"Guess Shiva was right when she said you wouldn't kill."

Robin and Nightrix exchanged a surprised look. "Lady Shiva is here? Helping you?" Nightrix asked confused. That didn't sound at all like what her history lessons had told her. Shiva was notoriously known for being neutral, rarely interfering even when she was needed.

"Not the same Lady Shiva you knew, Damian." A woman said walking up to them. She was of asian descent, and was possible in her early 50's strands of silver adorned in her hair. "The Lady Shiva you knew has long since passed. I took the life of Sandra Woosan myself. Now I hold the title Lady Shiva. I am Cynthia Lance. It's a pleasure to meet you again."

"Cynthia Lance," Robin repeated the name, remembering where he had heard it, "Sin. You're Black Canary's adopted daughter. We haven't meet yet." He told her shortly. It was true he had heard about Black Canary's new protege White Canary, but hadn't met her yet. He was a year older then her, and they hadn't crossed paths in his universe.

"Is that so?" She mused with smile. "I'm sure you'll meet me soon then."

"Umm," Nightrix interrupted the moment bringing everyone back to the topic at hand. "If you have the Lady Shiva, the world's greatest assassin, Why do you need us to kill your dictator for."

"She knows me too well." Shiva answered quickly. "I'm the one who helped her rise to power after all. A mistake I made in my youth more than 30 years ago. I'm trying to rectify that know, but she's too careful, too smart. I don't have a way in." She admitted.

"So you want us to go in and do your dirty work for you?" Damian asked with raised eyebrows, "Hell no."

Shiva frowned, "No matter what universe I don't think you'll ever change, Damian Wayne."

"Whatever," He waved her comment off. "We won't kill her for you, you'll have to kill her yourself."

"Wait," Nightrix intervened, "I thought Antonio said that he had a way in. Why can't you use that to get to The Red Queen?" She asked

Antonio sighed as he pulled out a cigarette from his pocket and lit it, "The sad thing is, The Red Queen knows about us. She knows where we are, who we are, how many of us there are, and what weapons we have. She knows everything about us."

"So why doesn't she just kill you?" Damian asked.

"Because she doesn't believe that we are a threat." Shiva answered him. "The fact remains that in order to get close to the red queen you have to join her army, and she only allows those under 18 to join her army."

"That explains the five year olds with machine guns." Damian said.

Shiva nodded, "Since she started monitoring pregnancies all children born in Gotham have been going to the Red Queen's child army."

"And those born before she that?" Nightrix asked.

Antonio frowned, "Forcibly taken from their parents to join her army. It's how she keeps most of the populace in line."

"Not all though," Lady Shiva corrected. "Some Children under 18 are still hiding from her, that's where you two will come in."

Antonio continued for her, "We'll put in a tip that some children are being illegally held away from the Red Queen, and you'll two have access to Wayne Tower where the Red Queen is."

"Then we can get Batman!" Nightrix finished. "That's a great idea-"

"Except for the part where we execute the leader of your government." Robin said frowning. "If you want us to take her out for you, then we'll find our own way inside." He told them.

Lady Shiva thought for a moment, "So, I can assume that you have no problem with her being killed."

Robin shrugged, but looked towards Nightrix to see if they were on the same page. She looked unsure.

Antonio noticed her uncertainty and began to speak, "If you don't help us..." He drifted off then started from the beginning. "I'm running out of time."

"What do you mean?" Nightrix pressed.

"I have a twin sister, Isabella. Our 21st birthday is in a week." He told them. "There's a reason the Red Queen's army doesn't have anybody older in the army despite being over 3 decades old." Robin had wondered that, Nightrix as well. "The Red Queen, she believes that after a certain age that she can no longer control her soldiers. That no matter what she does to them when they get old enough they'll betray her, unless they are truly loyal. Only three people have past that test. My sister won't pass, she'll be killed. I want to avoid that. So, please help us save the world."

Nightrix doubt faded when Antonio revealed his own personal reason for fighting the Red Queen. "I guess if I don't see it happening I can't stop it. We can't save everyone, right?"

Antonio shot the 17 year old a smile, "Thanks, let's get started on this plan."

* * *

**_Word Count: 13,448_**

_A/N: Hello, hello, hello again! I'm back with not just one chapters, but two! This was originally supposed to be 1 chapter but it was so long I cut in half. Like I said, I don't like going over about 15,000 for a chapter. I'll tell you the original word count in the next Author's note. I'll so in the next one I'll tell you all the nitty gritty details so I won't have to repeat myself. I hope you like Displacement. It was one of the first chapters I came up. _

_Until Next time, _

_~Miyu Kuran, June 13, 2015 _


	15. Gotham's Best 4

_**Gotham's Best 4**_

_**Displacement (2 of 2)**_

If Mary was going to find Batman she was going to have to go the one place that not even Superman could clean up, Crime Alley. If Gothamites were anything, they were adaptable. If Superman started cracking down on them hard, they just had to be more careful. Besides, the old buildings down here were perfect to hide from superman, they were lined in lead.

Now Mary knew that if Batman wanted the stay hidden she wouldn't find him, but one thing was also true about Bruce. He stayed watching. She had to get his attention, and that was something Mary was very good at. Screw all that hiding and stealth junk, she'd rather face her enemy in the light. Getting Bruce's attention in a part of town that everyone was trying to keep their head would be way to easy. Sadly, it also meant that Damian would be forced to come after.

Mary shrugged that idea off of her, should she play her cards right, Bruce would get to her before Damian. God, how she wished she could hate him for this, but she couldn't. Mary shook her head expelling the thought from her mind she didn't have time for this. She needed to find a hose, some buckets, and some very unlucky people's cars.

Oh this was going to be fun.

Two Hours later, Mary had finished. Mission should be a success considering she set a building on fire. Yes, she set a building on fire, but what else was she supposed to do? The fastest way to get Batman's attention would be through media. And a raging fire on an abandoned warehouse would sure get people's attention. But she also had to send a message to Batman. Nothing too obvious that anyone could figure something that only someone in the family would know. So, in gasoline Mary painted the Nightwing symbol on the side of the warehouse for all to see. It's midnight, and she was sure it was on all the news stations. Bruce would have to be dead not to see it. And the message? While the giant flaming symbol was Nightwing's it was also shared by another lesser known Superhero known as, Flame bird. Flamebird's real identity is that of Bette Kane distant cousin to Bruce Wayne and first Cousin of Kate Kane, the current Batwoman. In other words, Mary wanted Bruce to meet her at The Kane Mansion.

The Kane's were slightly estranged from the Wayne's in Mary's universe, so in this one ties should be completely severed. So no one could connect Batman to the Kane's. The Kane family were nice people, they just happened to be like every other rich person in Gotham. And that meant a little more shallow then what she was used to. She had meet a Kane once at a gala, one of the few her father attends, and she honestly couldn't tell them apart from the other Gotham Elite. The Kane's certainly lacked the Wayne charisma, Bruce had even passed on to his adopted children. That being said, Mary certainly had some of that charm.

Lying was something that was second nature to her. Mary often wondered if this was hypocritical of her, but then remembered that most of their life was a giant hypocritical mess, and promptly got over her worries. So when she knocked the door, tears in her eyes claiming that got lost walking home, Of course they couldn't say no to her. They invited her in. Waking the whole mansion up to help her find her way back home, and to her fictional parents.

"So, what did you say your name was, " Asked on of the Kane's, Jacob, she believed his name was.

"Stella, " Mary answered. "I Just moved here from Manhattan. I'm sorry to disturb this late, it's just that it gets so dark here at night, nothing like New york. I needed some fresh air now I'm lost. They had given her a phone to call her parents. Of course she didn't, only calling the Manor's house phone which was of course no longer in service.

"Oh it's fine, Sweetie." The lady, Catherine, comforted her. Mary heard footsteps walking down the stairs, it was a face she actually knew, Bette.

"Uncle Jacob, What's going on? You guys woke Matty up." Mary looked down and noticed that a small child clung to Bette's leg. The former Titan was the same age as Tim and Stephanie, Mary had forgotten that. Mary felt a pang of hurt in her chest at thought. Tim and Steph would have surely had children by now. They both loved kids.

"Oh, Bette, This girl rang our door bell. She need help. She just moved to Gotham from Manhattan, and got lost on the way home. We're helping her out till her parents come for her." Jacob Kane answered.

Bette eyed Mary suspiciously, "This late at night?" she asked.

Mary sniffed, putting back on the crocodile tears, "I'm sorry, I just wanted to explore." She lied. Mary wondered if Bette were ever a titan in this universe. She was definitely over cautious enough.

"Oh," She paused. "Have I seen you somewhere before? You look awfully familiar."

Mary shook her head, "Maybe, I've been to a few Galas in Gotham before moving here. Have you ever been to any in Manhattan?" She asked already knowing they had. She looked familiar most likely because they had once or twice met Mari Anders-Grayson before her parents divorce, of course that was more than 10 years ago. They wouldn't even bring it up since the Wayne name being shamed.

"True." Catherine agreed, "I can hardly keep up with all the people I've meet."

"Still, Cathy," Jacob began. "She does favor someone, doesn't she? I think Bette was on to something. It's at the tip of my tongue."

Crap. Mary hadn't planned on this. If they remembered her, it could bring up a lot a questions she didn't have answers for.

"I got it!" Jacob snapped. Mary paled. She was done for. "Supergirl! You look just like a young Supergirl!"

...What?

Mary was beyond confused. Supergirl? She didn't look anything like the Supergirl. Unless...

Mary laughed awkwardly, "Oh yeah, I guess I do." It seemed everyone in the room knew what he was talking about except Mary, and she wasn't about to give herself up. If at all possible Bette was now studying Mary even more intently. Could it be possible that this universes Supergirl, and Mari Anders-Grayson were one in the same? She couldn't get answers here. Once Bruce got to her, he would have them.

Mary heard a small creak on the roof, she wasn't the only one who heard it, Bette was looking up at the ceiling. Before turning back to Mary.

"Thank you for helping me, Mr. and Mrs. Kane. I think my parents are here." Mary said.

"What?" Jacob asked, "I didn't hear-" As he said the word the doorbell rang behind him. "Oh maybe you did hear something."

Mary then began to fidget nervously, "My parents are probably really mad at me. Do you think you both can help calm them down a little. I didn't mean to go out this late honest." Catherine gave hr a sympathetic look.

"I'm sure we can do something. Come on, Jacob." beckoning her husband they both walked to the foyer, and out of sight of the kitchen. Mary made her way to the kitchen window opening it, and climbing onto the seal. Bette stared at her shocked. Mary shot a wink to her before jumping out of the window and landing safely, with roll, in the grass below.

It took Bette a minute to gain her composure, but she quickly snapped out of it, and shut and locked the window in a hurry, erasing any evidence of Mary being there at all.

"Stella?" Catherine called walking into the kitchen, "I'm sorry dear, but no one was at the door- Stella?" She asked as she took notice to the missing state of the child who had been in her kitchen not even two minutes before. "Bette, what happened to Stella?" She asked.

Bette shock her head, "I left the kitchen to go get Matty's pacifier. When I came back she was gone." Bette lied.

"Oh dear," Catherine paled, "Jacob, search the house! Stella'a gone!" She called running to her husband. Bette looked at the window and smirked. They of course would never find.

Mary sat patiently waiting in a tree, when the branch shifted under new weight.

"Hello, Bruce." She sang swinging her legs.

"That was some message you left me." He commented.

"Well, you don't own a cell phone anymore, do you?" Mary turned to him and he frowned. "Of course you don't. " She said with a sigh.

"We need to talk somewhere more private." He said gruffly.

"Okay," She hopped down from the tree, "Lead the way, Batman." She said, and he did. He ended up leading Mary back to Crime Alley, underneath the city in the maintenance section of the sewers. It was cleaned out and was made into a new Batbunker, one Superman would never find.

"Mar'i," he finally spoke. "How are you here?" He asked,

Mary sighed, "Obviously, I'm from a different reality, one where Superman is still Superman, and not Hitler with heat vision. As to _how_ I came here, I honestly have no clue. One minute I'm in the cave talking to everyone next I'm gotham being chased down by Catwoman and Nightwing."

"That sounds about right," Batman muttered, "Notice a temporal flux earlier today. No matter what I'll figure out a way to bring you home, Mar'i." Bruce would always be Bruce no matter the universe, even when everyone else was different Bruce was the only true constant. It was the first comforting thing she found in this whole universe.

"Thanks, Bruce. But I've got to ask..." Mary started. "What went so wrong in this universe? Why is everything so wrong?"

Batman sighed and sat down, "It's a long story, Mar'i."

"Okay, then just answer the questions I've got because I've got to know what happened." Batman nodded, Mary took a deep breathe and continued, "Why did Superman turn evil?"

Batman didn't hesitate on the answer, "The loss of Lois and the baby changed him, scarred him. Some men can't handle loss as well as others." Mary understood his point. Superman lost everything, and cracked under the weight. An eight year old Bruce Wayne lost everything, as well, but as they say "Real gold fears no fire."

Mary looked Bruce directly in the eye, "I want an honest answer now. No hiding things because you don't think I can handle, and no leaving out facts. I want the truth and nothing but the truth, Bruce. I mean it." He stared at her back, Mary almost thought he already knew what she was going to ask. "How did my father die?"

Batman didn't say anything at first. A long pause hung stagnant across the room heavy on the mood, but finally he answered. "Damian and I were already having disagreements. I decided to ask Dick for help with him. Dick always handled Damian better then I ever could." Mary wasn't sure if she were hearing right. It almost sounded like jealously in Bruce's tone. Longing. "But Damian was 13. He was young, brash, and headstrong. More so then he's ever been. He started picking fights with Dick, too. They would spar and Damian would get so angry that he would lose perspective, and Dick would win. Damian would only get angrier at this and take cheap shots at Dick. Dick would catch them every time. That night at Arkham, I'm still not to clear about what was all said that made Damian so angry he took another cheap shot at Dick. Only this time Dick didn't catch it. That's how Damian killed Dick, and at once I lost two sons." Mary felt like one of the weights had been lifted off her shoulder. It was an accident, but one look at Bruce's face told her that he didn't take it that way. Mary decided to keep her opinion quiet lest start even more drama.

Mary nodded, "Okay last question, What happened to Mar'i Anders-Grayson?"

"I wondered when you were going to ask that." Batman said. "You know a lot more about this universe then I thought you would."

"The internet is a wonderful thing. I found the birth certificate for this universe version of me, but all record of her stops when she was 8 years old when Kori Anders and Richards Grayson's divorce is finalized. I assume Starfire took Mar'i back to Tamaran with her, right?" Mary asked.

"Good deduction, " Batman praised. "Yes, she did. she felt Mari's powers were better suited for Tamaran."

"All record of her stops, but I know for a fact she came back to Earth because of this." Mary pulls out the picture from her pocket and shows it to Bruce. "This is a picture of Mari Anders-Grayson at at least eighteen years of age. If she came back to Earth why is there no record of that?"

"Because Superman covered it up well." Batman answered. "Because Superman made the mistake of trusting her."

Mary stared at Batman suspiciously, "What are you talking about?"

"10 years after Mar'i left Earth she came back to find that everyone she loved here, except for me, were dead, and that Superman was at fault. By Tamaran laws, you wanted to put his head on a sword of kryptonite and march it through the streets for all to see, but it wasn't that simple. Superman was stronger than you, had more allies. So you came to me. I wasn't in for killing everyone in the Regime like you were. I was able to talk you down from that to making them serve their rightful time in prison. Still, you wanted a part in getting revenge. Apparently, you left your space ship floating around Mars away from Superman's watchful eyes, and flew down on your own. No one but me knew that you were on earth a full month before Superman found you crashed in the Nevada desert where we planted you on purpose. You were a mole. You were supposed to be on the inside, and help tear down Superman's reign. You were a good mole, my best one. Superman trusted you so much he gave you the title of Supergirl and let you wear his symbol on his chest. He thought of you like family. Then you tore all of that away from him when you reveled yourself. He was angry...You didn't survive, but you saved the lives of 2 thousand factory workers that day."

"I died..." Mary stuttered.

"You died saving lives, that's what you were trained for." Oddly those words did in fact comfort Mary, that was what she was trained for.

Mary took a shaky breath, "So why no records?"

"Superman didn't want record of his failure at noticing you were a mole. You were in deep cover for at least 2 years." Batman answered. "Are those all your questions?" mary nodded. "Good, now we can figure out a way-"

"Wait!" She cut him off, "Tell me you have a plan to take down Superman, right? Tell me you've got something up your sleeve."

Bruce remained silent.

"Bruce_-Grandpa_, Please tell me you aren't going to let all those lives lost go to waste. That we can beat Superman." Mary pleaded. She couldn't leave without knowing that Superman wouldn't be in power for long.

Batman gave her an even stare, "There is no _'we'_ in this equation. I'm going to find a way to get you back to your dimension."

"You can't be serious!" Mary said "After learning about everything happening here you expect me to leave and do nothing."

"I expect you to do as your told." He told her calmly. "Mar'i, This world isn't any of your concern. Though I understand your bleeding heart, you can't help. This universe must be saved by the people in this universe, or else nothing will change."

Mary gaining courage in her words looked Bruce in the eyes, "You know you're not always right, Bruce." She told him, "You can have help. All you need to do is ask. I can't leave without knowing that you at least have some semblance of an idea as how to save the world. If you've got a good plan. Then I'll go, no fighting. I swear."

Bruce's jaw clenched. He didn't like the idea of her staying longer, but fighting to bring her to safety was not something he had a lot of time for. "Fine."

Mary grinned, "So, gramps, Is this the part where we bounce ideas off of each other?"

* * *

Robin pretended to be scared when the door to the small, run-down, two-room apartment had been kicked down. Nightrix was a better actor then she looked and screamed accordingly along with their "mother". He stood by their father putting on a semi-brave face the best he could. In actuality, this wasn't the scariest thing Robin had ever done, and by the bored glint that only stayed for a few seconds in Nightrix's eye, it wasn't her's either.

Just like Antonio predicted, it was only soldiers who came to retrieve them. No higher ups.

_"The thing is Robin, there are still people with in Red Queen's Regime who would recognize you..." Antonio said. He sounded unsure if he wanted to release that information._

_"So, why bother sending him?" Nightrix asked, arms crossed. She didn't like the whole situation. It felt wrong to her. "Just send me. No one knows me in this universe."_

_Shiva shook her head, "They rarely accept children over 15. Only extremely mild mannered ones. If you can fake it that well, then maybe, but Robin is the best ticket in." She explained._

_Antonio nodded, "Besides, you should only see soldiers. No one old enough to remember who Damian Wayne is."_

_Robin and Nightrix exchanged a glance, "What happened to the Damian Wayne in this universe?" she asked._

_Lady Shiva, Cynthia Lance, looked up at Robin with sad eyes. "He died...Young."_

"Your are in violation of Law Code M012; All minors are to join the army of our lady, The Red Queen, and must join the ranks at her Academy." The eldest one barked. It was a boy, no older than 17. "Take them." He ordered. With a fake scream, Nightrix let herself be grabbed and dragged to kneel in front of the one soldier giving orders. "How old are you?" He asked. There was no kindness in his voice, or eyes. There was no indication at all that the boy standing before Nightrix was her age at all. In fact, it seemed like he had never been a child at all.

"I asked How old are you!" He grabbed her by the hair and brought her face up to his. It seemed she didn't answer her question fast enough.

"17!" She cried out in pain. "I'm 17. Please, let me go! I'll do whatever you want!"

The soldier grinned a sadistic, toothy grin at her before throwing her to the others. "We'll take her. If she can't handle Class, she'll get signed." He walked up towards Robin who was now hiding behind his pretend father. "I won't hurt your family, if you come willingly."

Robin snorted, "Yeah, because you've made that so clear already." They never told him her had to be meek. He didn't even think he could fake being meek.

The soldier clenched his jaw, "A mouth on this one... Doesn't matter. We'll beat it out of him. How old are you boy?" He asked.

"13." Robin answered honestly.

"Perfect. The Red Queen finds favor in boys your age. She says they learn the best." He said. With a snap of his fingers. Robin was in the arms of two other child soldiers. "Let's go." He ordered. "But first..." He looked around. He stared evenly at the 'mother and father', "Lock the parents inside, and set fire to this building." With those orders the soldier walked out with Robin and Nightrix being dragged behind him. They stared wide eyes at the scene playing in front of them. This wasn't part of the plan. No one was supposed to get hurt.

Robin meet Nightrix's eyes, The insecurity playing back again in them. He shook his head at her. They needed to finish the job despite what they just saw.

_"Okay, the security access is on the same level where Class takes place. That's where you'll be taking. They'll give you 15 minutes to shower and change. That's when you'll sneak in and take out the shield, letting the resistance into the lower levels. Then we can end the Reign of the Red Queen."_

_Robin stared at the holographic map presented to him. Wayne Tower's layout was changed since he had last seen it. A smart plan, but that only pegged one question. "How do you know all of this?" Robin asked Antonio. "It seems like there is no way a nobody would have this kind of information. So how do you have it? "_

_Antonio sighed. He should have seen this question coming. He pulled out the cigarette from his mouth and exhaled some smoke, "Because I used to be part of the Red Queen's Regime." He said. "I Escaped, but Isabella is still in there. I need to save her from being signed, from being killed."_

* * *

"Alright, you have tons of contingency plans, Bruce." Mary said swinging her legs in the chair, "Which one is going to work?" She asked.

"I only have one left." Batman revealed. "Superman did a good job of making sure the others were destroyed. There's only one way to stop him now and it's unreachable."

Mary blinked at him confused. "What do you mean you can't?" She asked.

"After Vandal Savage took my contingency plans and turned them against us. I knew that they were too dangerous to be activated by only one person's decision alone." He explain.

Mary nodded understanding, "So, you left it up to the league. "

"Exactly, The founding members, " He clarified, "Wonder Woman, Flash, Green Arrow, Green Lantern, and myself are required to unlock it from it's safe."

"Yeah," Mary agreed, "And last I checked, Wonder Woman can be found with Superman. The same can be said about the rest of them." Mary paused. It hurt her deeply the information she found out online. "I still can't believe that Hal Jordan turned Yellow Lantern. Once a month, he takes me to the movies... I named my cat after him...The Hal I knew would have never done something like this. "

"This isn't the world you knew." Batman told her, "It's barely the world I knew. Now we have to figure out a way to save it." Mary felt slightly better about the situation. Bruce was right, and Damian had been right earlier. She didn't know this world, or the people in it. They had been in completely different situation. They had fought in a war that probably would never happen in her world.

"So everyone's evil. How do we trick them into getting the kryptonite?"

"Even if we could, it wouldn't work. Green Arrow's dead. We would need him to get it." Mary frowned. She had forgotten that fact. This world was a disaster. She thought to herself, she almost wished...

"That's it!" Mary practically screamed.

"What?" Batman asked her.

"Your Justice League may be evil and missing a few members, but the one from my world isn't!" She told him.

Batman looked up at Mary, She saw a spark in his eye that she hadn't seen since she found him, He finally looked like himself. Two steps ahead. "Making that kind of technology won't be hard, but hiding it under Superman's nose will be."

"We can figure that out later." Mary bounced up and down in her seat. They had a plan. A plan to save this world. She would feel so much better about leaving it now. "Right now, let's figure out how to build a device that can travel dimensions. "

"I know a guy. We need to-" Bruce was cut of by a chime from the computer in the front of the room. Mary looked at him for an answer. "Trouble." he answered. He turned towards it and turned the large computer on. It was no bat computer, but it was no mere laptop either.

On it's screen, a video of what was currently happening not to far from their location. It was Catwoman being mercilessly attacked by what looked to be assassin's decked in red.

"Who are they?" Mary asked. She never seen anyone like these people. They were young, too. Almost too young to be taking her down this way.

"I don't know." Batman answered gruffly, "No would dare attack one of Superman Regime members."

Mary looked at Batman evenly, "You're insinuating that they might be from another dimension...It would make sense. Unless, someone finally decided to rebel." Mary said on a side note.

"Against, the Man of steel. No ordinary person is capable of that." He answered.

"Good thing we're not ordinary people. So, I ask again who are they?"

Batman watched as they kicked Catwoman in the face, "I don't know yet." He growled, "But I'm going to find out." Getting up from the chair, and with a dramatic flare of his cape Batman walked out leaving a a cheering Starling to follow behind.

Batman was officially back.

* * *

Once inside, That one teenage soldier lead them into a room where they meant another soldier. This one had to be about 19, maybe 20. She had her blonde hair done up in a no-nonsense bun, and her uniform was slightly different, adorned with medal indicating her higher rank. The thing that disturbed Robin about this girl was she was a dead ringer for Stephanie Brown. The Blonde hair, that nose, and face. Everything was the same, except the eyes. Stephanie's eyes were green, these were blue. She also lacked the merriment that were always accompanied in Brown's eyes. She lacked the sincerity, and the kindness.

"This will be your new living quarters till Class is no longer in sessions." She told them. "You will remain in Her Majesty's Forces until you are signed at age 21." Signed. Damian knew this was the word for when they killed the soldiers over 21. "There is no escaping. There is no disobeying orders, and there is no hiding anything from The Red Queen." She told them as she paced up and down. "Now, you will be given new names after you take showers, and receive your student uniforms. When Class is no longer in session, you will be given Doll uniform. Any funny business will be immediately known, and will result in sending you down into reeducation. I heard it's not a nice place." She told them seriously, "Now you have 15 minutes, then you will need to be in Class, or you'll won't be given any food tomorrow. Are we clear?" She asked. Yes, Damian knew she was far too serious to be Brown.

Both Nightrix and Robin nodded, "Good." She looked between the both of them, "Dismissed." She ordered. Getting there belongings both Robin and Nightrix headed for the showers. Luckily, no one else was present, though the room looked to hold about 30 people at a time.

Robin paused when they entered the bathroom, taking in his surroundings. The way the camera's were placed seemed familiar. It was a similar system Batman used for the security in the Watch Tower showers.

Nightrix turned to Robin, "What's wrong?" She asked. He didn't say anything to her, only walking up to the security camera and studying it more, "Ummm... Is everything okay?" She asked. He finally turned to her, and put his finger to his lips indicating for her to be silent as he turned on the shower. Finally he leaned in close to her and whispered in her ear.

"The camera in here is off, let's go. We don't have much time." Knowing it best not to argue, Nightrix nodded and followed Robin. He threw her the uniform of the Red Queen's students. It was mostly black, but with red accents opposite to the actual Doll outfits. Nightrix put it on understanding that they probably wouldn't have time to come back and through it on, not only that, but they needed to blend in.

Stepping out into the hallway, they followed the instructions given to them by Antonio Bertinelli. A right. A left. Another left, then the third door on the right.

_"Now," Antonio started, "You'll have to be quick, and silent about it. Make sure you're not seen, or else I can't guarantee you'll be able to make it out with you're Batman. Do you understand?" he asked._

_Robin snorted, "Please this is child's play. Let's go and get this over with." Beside him Nightrix shrugged. He wasn't wrong._

Now, this was the hard part about their mission taking down the people in the security room without being seen. Like Antonio had reported, the entrance to the room was in a security camera blind spot. So there should be no record of them at all being there giving them room to leave and search for Batman.

As soon as Robin picked the lock the job was done. Four people, Three girls and one guy, all trained, but caught by surprise. They never stood a chance and none of them had seen there attackers. Soon the traps underneath Wayne Tower, and the security was disabled, and Robin and Starling were waiting for the Captain to show back up to bring them to Class. From here on out they were on their own.

The class was filled with few others. The Red Queen made sure not to miss any children. In fact, the captain mentioned it being the biggest number that they've ever missed this month. It was smooth sailing from here, find out where they were probably holding Batman and get out, that meant sucking up to the right person. It should have been easy from here on out, but Murphy's law is always in effect.

There instructor stepped in finally, She had greying black hair, and a scar running down her cheek. She was an older Asian woman. Who was physically fit, and Robin noticed she had an assassin's stare in her eyes. Something you don't see in many people. It was the face that got Robin, still. She looked familiar, but at the same time he wasn't sure. Trusting his instincts he hung back, hiding behind Nightrix.

"What are you doing?" She hissed to him so quietly he even barely heard her.

"I think I know her." Robin replied at the same volume. Something was wrong, Antonio told them they wouldn't see anyone old enough to remember Damian Wayne while inside Wayne Tower... This had to be a fluke. Damian thought to himself. A change in the plans they couldn't account for.

"Everyone line up!" She called, and on cue everyone gathered in a straight horizontal line in front of her. Damian hoped he had been wrong. Because if he did know her, there was no doubt that she knew him.

Standing in the line Robin and Nightrix stood side by side, Robin succeeding in concealing his worry. The woman strut pat them gazing at each new recruit careful. She passed by Robin once, not noticing anything. He almost sighed in relief when she came back down the line. Now, she was studying them even more closely. She stopped, not at Robin, but at Nightrix.

"What's you're name girl?" The older woman asked.

"Victoria Jackson, Ma'am!" Nightrix replied back properly.

"And you boy?" She asked Robin.

"Benjamin Jackson." Robin replied with a clench of his jaw. From the way she was studying him Damian knew it was only a matter of time before she recognized him. Beside him Nightrix was tense ready to pounce if need be.

"Benjamin Jackson," Her lips curled into a feral grin as she repeated his alias. "You know If I hadn't known you, that might have worked. Sadly, not this time Damian Wayne- UGH!" As soon as she said his name Robin's hand jabbed itself into the woman's throat before running away with Nightrix tailing behind him.

"What are we going to do!" Nightrix screamed as they ran down the hall. Screams of "After them!" rang out behind them,

"Running seems like a good plan for now!" Robin shouted back, pushing and shoving people out of his way.

"And Batman?!" She asked.

"WE'RE IMPROVISING!"

"Get them!" Now the older woman was running after them. For someone well into their sixties, she was keeping up nicely. Apperently her training them wasn't for show after all.

It also seemed that with the woman's chasing of them, the Dolls( As Antonio had called them) tried specially hard to catch them now. With the more they ran into the harder it was becoming to outrun and out maneuver them.

About 100 meters ahead, A door caught Nightrix's eye. "Robin!" She called. "Stairs!"

"I see them!" Turning left and into the stairwell, Robin noted that this was the only thing that hadn't changed about Wayne Tower. Of course Robin noted, Changing stairs was difficult and improbable, but at least knowing where all the stairwells were would help them if only a little.

Instead of running down each set of steps Robin jumped down the gaps in-between flight, Slowing himself own using the rails and flinging his body down to the tenth floor. He had a plan, he just hoped he was right.

"What's on the tenth floor?" Nightrix asked.

"The stairwell got me thinking." Robin answered. "She changed the layout, but nothing that was too hard to move."

"Like the stairwells." Nightrix said catching on.

"Exactly, On the 10th floor is a restroom. In that restroom should be a vent large enough for us to move around. Those vents connect throughout the whole building."

Nightrix nodded, "I get it. A place to hide catch our breath, that also gives us easy access to everywhere in the building. That's brilliant." They ran into the restroom. Just like Robin said, the vent was just exactly where it would be in his universe. Nightrix carefully and quickly unscrewed, before climbing in before Robin. They closed it. Finally safe, but they had to keep moving.

"If we take a left here, there should be a panel, that can connect me to the computers here." Robin mentioned.

"But won't that tell them where we are? We don't need them climbing in here after us."

"We need to find out where exactly they keep prisoners. You're brother is probably there. Once we find that out we need to book it for the exit. I just need an updated map of this place." Nightrix nodded. That plan had flaws, but as far as coming up with a better one... It wasn't happening. "Here it is!" Robin said as he came across the panel. Opening it up revealed a screen, where Robin began to hack into giving a map of the building. Updated and all. "There." Robin pointed to the top of the map. "The Top floor is where prisoners are located."

"The Top floor?"

"The most protection. They obviously don't want whoever's in there getting out. Getting there with this much security on high alert is not going to be easy." Robin mused.

Nightrix almost agreed until, "Wait! Antonio, Lady Shiva, and The resistance the attack should be happening at any moment now. In the confusion we can make our way up, and out with Batman."

"Good plan." Robin agreed. "Now let's place ourselves the closest place to the stairwell- !" Gas suddenly began to flood into the vent.

"What!"

"DON'T BREATH!" Robin shouted, but it was already to late. His vision began to blur as he heard a smooth voice talk on a loudspeaker.

"Come now, Damian. You didn't think it would be that easy, did you?" There was no mistaking it. Damian thought just before he lost consciousness beside Nightrix. He had just spoken to the Red Queen.

Robin woke up alone, and in an unfamiliar room. He knew he wasn't with Nightrix anymore, that was clear. Oddly enough, he wasn't bound. He was just laying down in the bed of a nice room. Looking out the window, it was clear that he was now on one of the lower levels of Wayne Tower. He needed to get out of here and find Nightrix, complete the missions and get the hell out of this universe.

"Oh you're awake." A voice called. Robin turned around to see a woman walking towards him. Her hair was black, and she looked to be in her early sixties. Her clothing wasn't militaristic at all, just a simple matching red pants suit. She had a different air about her then the others did. "I was beginning to think that Lian was too harsh on you." She said kindly. "Making you run all over the Dollhouse was just cruel of her. There was no way you could have escaped."

Lian... Damian thought. That woman general was Lian. Now that he thought about it he could see the resemblance. She was older, but that was definitely Lian. Hadn't Cynthia Lance mentioned something like that? That she and others joined the Red Queen. That mean others he knew could possibly be in it as well.

"Where's Nightrix!?" Robin barked.

The woman winced. "I really wish you would relax. You are safe, as is she."

Robin growled, "That doesn't answer my question."

"Fine. She's on the top floor in our holding areas. I'd like to see you get through all of my dolls to get to her. We're on the 4 floor, and every floor there are more than 30 dolls. You can do the math, can't you Damian?" Realizing she was right Damian calmed down slightly. He needed a plan and fast. He needed to buy some time.

"Why am I here?" He asked.

"Cause I wanted it to be so." She told him simply.

"And you get everything you want?" He narrowed his eyes at the woman.

"I usually do."

Robin snorted, "If you get everything you want, then what about the Red Queen, both of you can't be in charge?" At this she began fighting a grin. "What, Old lady?"

"You must be confused, dear Damian." She told him "I am the Red Queen."

Robin stared at her blankly, "You're not the Red Queen. I know the Red Queen, she may have been nine years old last I saw of her, but I do now she's not you. Firstly, The Red Queen is petite. You're tall for a woman. She was a frail, little thing. You I can see are almost to fit for your age. And lastly, The Red Queen is a natural blonde. Unless you died your eyebrows without dying the grey strands in your hair. You're not Alicia Royal, the Red Queen."

She nodded at his word, "You are both correct and dead wrong, Damian Wayne. I am not Alicia Royal, but I am the Red Queen." She smiled at him. Damian paused he knew that smile. "I killed her and a lot of people to get to where I am today. I am a better queen than Alicia could have ever been." That smile haunted him, it was a smile he saw everyday. It was the smile that asked him for help on english homework, and the smile that laughed while diving off a tall building only to swing to safety.

Robin took a step back, "Mary?" He had to be wrong. He hoped he was wrong.

She gave him the sweet smile he saw everyday before patrols, "What, Damian, not going to call me Small Grayson?"

* * *

Starling felt slightly naked without her cape and skirt. Sadly, she had abandoned them back at Damian's apartment. Now she looked like a small Nightwing clone, and in this universe she really didn't want that. Still Domino Mask in place, Today Starling had to save a Catwoman from an unknown threat she didn't know.

Still It had to be done.

Starling was amazed. While she was used to working with her Batman. This one hadn't worked with anyone, let alone her, in years. Still the team work was as fluid as ever. Batman threw down multiple smoke pellets in the area containing Catwoman and her attacker. Without a word, Starling dropped down to Catwoman's side.

"Selina, It's me, Mary. We need to get you out of here." Starling told the barely conscious woman.

Catwoman groaned, "Mary? Nightwing and I..." She groaned again. "Went looking for you...Have to send you home." Starling grabbed a hold of Selina.

"I've got you, Let's get you to safety." Firing her grappling hook. Starling was almost in the air when a gust of wind suddenly blew away the smoke. Except there was no way the wind was that strong today.

"Please, Bruce, Did you really think that was going to work? Get some new tricks, Old Dog." Catwoman's attacker spoke. She pulled the goggles of her head. Across the lot Starling's gaze meet Batman's. They both had the same thought. A speedster. Now knowing that they were dealing with a meta Mary pushed the button on her grapple to get Catwoman to safety. Only to find her line had been cut.

"Sorry," Starling looked up remembering that the Speedster woman had not come alone. "but you're not going anywhere." Starling barely had time to duck as a meteor hammer was thrown her way. She needed to get away quick. Selena needed a hospital, and she couldn't focus on the assassin and on Selena. To Starling's relief she didn't have to. From the top of one the building came Damian Wayne Decked out in his Nightwing gear to help her fight.

"Get Catwoman and go." He ordered her not even looking back at her only staring at the assassin.

"But, Dam-"

"Go!" She didn't need to be told twice. Firing yet another grapple, and holding Catwoman tight Mary was soon on the roof of a building. Sadly, The hospital was far, and as Starling looked down at the streets below. The number of assassins plus the speedster was 12. Batman and Nightwing needed her help. This could get Bruce caught by the regime, but he'd figure something out. Pulling off Catwoman's cowl, Starling removed the comm link from her ear.

"Watchtower, Come in Watchtower." She spoke into it hoping thy would answer even though it wasn't Selena's voice coming through.

"Who is this?" A familiar voice demanded. Starling recognized it as Cyborgs. "This channel is for High Chancellor's Regime use only. I don't know how you got on-"

"Victor! " She said knowing he would pause at his name, "No time. Catwoman's been injured. She needs transport to the Watchtower, now!" Starling ordered. "I'm putting the comm back in her ear, transport her in there seconds." Starling didn't even give him a chance to speak as she ripped the ear piece from her and put it back into Catwoman's. Two seconds later, Selena disappeared from sight. He took her word for it. Thank god, Now Starling had to help Batman and Nightwing with the problem at hand.

Starling sprinted to the edge of the building, diving off it. She loved this part, the flying. Catching herself on the flagpole below and swinging herself off it. Starling landed perfectly in front of Batman and Nightwing.

"What happened to Catwoman?" Batman asked.

"I had to pick the lesser of evils at the moment. Hospitals too far away, and there was no way I could leave you guys with out helping. I called the Regime."

Batman nodded understanding what that implicated, "So, how long before Superman shows up and tries to kill me?"

" About 15 minutes." Nightwing answered. He spared Batman a glance, "I suggest you be gone by that time." Tension between them was still high.

"So three of us against eleven highly trained assassins and one Meta-human." Starling shrugged. "The odds have been worse." Bending down quickly Starling removed two daggers from the sides of her boots, and threw them at lighting speed, hitting her two assassin's in the soldiers. "Two down! Let's go." And the fight began. Starling mourned the loss of her Daggers, but knew if she pulled them out that the assassins would bleed out. Shame. Her version of Damian had gotten her them last christmas. He would have to replace them. Starling punched a assassin in the face and ducked as Batman hit them with the taser. She maneuvered out the way of Nightwing throwing another one of his shoulder while successfully kicking another in the face with a back hand spring. So far, they were doing pretty well until, the fighting for Starling stopped and she soon found herself outside of the fight and in the arms of the speedster.

"Everyone stop!" She called. Everyone froze including Nightwing and Batman. "I'll snap the little bitch's neck, if you so much as move." She threatened. With her speed, Starling didn't doubt she could do it. "Now, I didn't come here to fight." Starling snorted, and the speedster tightened her grip causing Starling to wince. "I repeat, I didn't come here to fight. I want information that you all have."

"So you beat Catwoman to a bloody pulp?" Batman asked raised eyebrows. "I don't think whatever you're asking is legal."

"Listen," She paused. "Let me make something clear. Baby girl here dies, if I don't get the answers I need." Nightwing and Batman looked towards one another. They didn't have the chance to beat her, not with her speed. They relaxed their weapons. "Good. Now, where is Damian Wayne?" She asked. Starling hissed in a breath. They were after Damian, but why?

Clenching his jaw, Nightwing stepped forward removing his mask. "I'm Damian Wayne." Starling gapped at Damian. Why was he willing to give himself up for her. No. This couldn't be right. This world's Damian was different. He couldn't possibly still care. Not after everything he's done.

"Shit, " The speedster cursed. "He's too old. All this time wasted." Pulling out a strange device from her belt the speedster pressed a button that fired a weird image that looked like a portal. "I must report my findings to the Red Queen." She walked into the portal, leaving behind the assassins that were too injured to follow. Starling stared after them. The Red Queen. In some universe the Red Queen was in charge, she couldn't even imagine a world like that. Her thoughts were cut short with a hard shove to her back sending her into the portal in front of her.

"This is your one chance home, Mary!" While Falling Mary twisted to see who had pushed. Damian. The man who killed her father. The Man who committed so many evil deeds in this world was still trying to send her home, but she couldn't go home yet. She had to help Bruce there. She had to stop Superman's tyranny. She had to save Damian.

"No!" But it was too late. Soon the portal closed behind her and Mary found herself on the ground. She tried to get up but a foot stepped on her head stopping her.

"So you followed us, eh? That's Fine." Mary struggled beneath her leg. The Speedster kicked her towards the Assassin's Take her to the holding area. She can stay up there with the others . The Red Queen will deal with her later." Mary gulped. Alicia Royal... She couldn't not yet. This world. She looked around and noticed everyone, all young people ranging in age from 5 to their early 20's wearing the symbol of The Red Queen. This is what was going to happen to their world should they be unable to stop Alicia Royal. Mary frowned as she was dragged all the way to the top floor of the building. taking in her surroundings and slowly memorizing how to get back down and out of here. She only had one mission now. Get home. The device that Meta had was the answer to all of her problems. Final, the stopped and Harshly threw Mary unto a giant cell then closed the door locking it. Leaving without one word. Mary moved to the bars to try to bust out when a voice stopped her.

"I wouldn't if I were you. " A girl about 17 in age walked up. She had on the Red Regime's uniform. Great, Mary thought, She had to deal with two Regimes in one day. "The bars are electrified.

Starling looked the girl up and down, "Thanks for the tip." She wasn't sure if she could trust the girl. It was a nice tip not that it mattered. Her whole suit was insulated, and could produce an electrical charge if need be. She doubted she would even feel the bars shock.

The girl walked back further into the cell, "So what'cha in for?" She asked.

"Running in the halls." Starling answered sarcastically. "Can you tell me anything important? Like how to get out of here?" Starling asked.

"Sorry, no help here. Name's Nightrix."

"Starling." She responded. Nightrix, Starling knew it had to be some kind of an alias. She didn't ask, after all it would be hypocritical of her.

Nightrix gapped at her, "You're Starling?" She asked. Starling nodded. "That can't be right. You can't be here. You were supposed to be in another dimension." NIghtrix rambled on.

"Whoa, Pause." Starling cut her off, "I was till this red clad Meta started came. I followed her here. It was the only way to get back back home."

Nightrix nodded as if she understood Starling's situation. "You're the dimension displaced Starling." She said. Starling turned to her surprised.

"How could you have known that?" She asked. Nightrix sighed and sat down next to what looked like an injured man, with a... Batsuit on? "How?"

"This is going to sound crazy, but I'm here with the Robin. You're Robin. He was with me trying to rescue my version of Batman, but we got captured and separated. I don't know where he is now."

Starling faced palmed, "Knowing Robin if he hasn't gotten out yet. He most likely can't. We're going to have to rescue him."

"And what about Batman? Our mission was to come here and get him, and get back to my universe. " Starling knelt down next to the injured Batman. He was younger than Bruce. Late 20's maybe early 30's He was slightly leaner than him too.

"You guys need to go." He suddenly said causing Starling to jump.

"Holy cow! Totally didn't know you were conscious. " She said moving closer to him. "Can you tell me what's wrong?"

He coughed, "A few Broken ribs, Broken collarbone, A couple of stab wounds. Those wouldn't be as much of a problem if it weren't the broken ankle I could help you two out." Starling nodded.

"We'll have to come back for you then." She told him seriously.

"Hold up! I just got Batman back. I'm not going to abandon him again!" Nightrix protested. Starling opened her mouth to retort, but Batman beat her to it.

"Victoria, Go." He told her seriously, "That's an order."

The teen turned to Batman, "We're not partners anymore, Christian. You can't tell me what to do."

At this statement Batman sat up, with not even so much as a groan, and looked Nightrix straight in the eye, "You're right. You may not be Robin anymore, but I'm still your older brother, meaning I _can_ tell you what to do. I suggest you get your ass moving. The faster you get Robin and the TDT the faster we can get the hell out of here."

Nightrix looked as if she she still didn't agree, but bit the inside of her cheek, and nodded.

Starling looked back and forth between the siblings. Seemed like the drama was now over she had to think of a plan to get out of here. She looked back at at the bars.

"You said the bars were electrified, right?" Starling asked. Nightrix nodded.

"Yeah, made the mistake of touching them when I got thrown in here." Starling walked over to bars studying them even more intently.

"There electrified internally, meaning these weren't made last minute to hold people. These were designed to hold people, specifically baseline humans. I'm guessing not that many Metas in this world, well aside from that one I meet earlier. I'm also going to take an educated guess that the bars are electrified using the main power."

"So..." Nightrix said.

"So, " Starling continued on. "My suit is insulated with enough of a charge to black out the building. It will fry off the electrical stuff in my suit, but I can get it fixed later. Back up generators will be online in at least 30 minutes."

"This used to be Wayne Tower." Nightrix supplied.

"15 minutes, if were lucky." Starling changed her mind. "15 minutes to get Robin, and get back up here. Am I missing anything?" She asked.

Nightrix nodded, "The TDT. It's the device used to travel through universes. Mine got taken when we got captured. To get home we need it back."

"Well, that explains how I got here." Starling realized. " It was weird they were looking for a Damian in the universe I got stuck in, but they said he was too old... OH GOD! Damian is in real trouble! Are you ready?" Nightrix nodded. Starling grabbed a hold of the bars, "This may get a little shocking."

* * *

Damian needed a plan, good thing one forced it's way to him when the lights suddenly shut down. Quickly, he flipped the table they were sitting at the older Mary's face and made a break for the door. As soon as he touched the door a knife found it's place through his plan.

"Shit!" He screamed in pain, "What the hell!?"

The Red Queen only laughed manically, "I don't know where you think you're going, Damian." She told him walking up to him calmly. She didn't even seem anger at his attempted escape. before she could get close enough. Damian pulled the knife from his hand and threw it at her. Of course, She dodged. He knew she would. He knew because his own version of Mary would do the same thing. Opening the door before she had the chance to stop him, and ran off. He needed to get to Nightrix who was now probably in the prisoner holding area with her brother. Two birds one stone now, at least he thought to himself. That when a thought struck Damian.

What the hell happened to the coup d'etat?

Cursing to himself Damian turned to try and find the stairs. Finally locating them he began to run in that direction only to trip and fall flat on his face. Knowing there wasn't a chance of that happening on his own Damian turned around to see a black tie firmly against his ankle, and at the end of the rope. Mary Grayson, The Red Queen.

"I find it funny that you believe you can get away from me." She spoke, pulling on the line dragging him back towards her. "Please be reasonable, Damian. I'm your partner. I know all of your moves."

Damian glared at the older doppelgänger in front of him, "You are not my partner."

She sighed, "I don't wish to hurt you."

"Then let me go."

"Not an option." She retorted. "I've waited years to be reunited with you. I can't let you go yet." Damian looked up at her.

"What are you talking about?" He asked. It didn't make sense, till Damian Remembered shiva's l words. "I died. In this universe, I died." His revelation stopped The Red Queen from pulling him towards her.

She nodded her head in agreement, "Yes."

Damian taking her moment of weakness to his advantage, pulled the line on his ankle letting it slip through her then weakened hold, untying it and running off up the stairwell. The power was off, but for Damian that was no problem. If everything was still the same the power would turn back on in about 8 minutes with the back up generators. Which pegged the question, who turned off the power. It couldn't have been the resistance. They didn't have the tech for it, and if they could have done it why did they need his help in the first place. The top floor, he thought to himself. The Top floor is where Nightrix and her Batman were being held. If he could get to them, find the TDT first. They'd be on their way back to safer territory. Something about this whole place didn't feel right to him when he got there and now he knew. Someone whom he thought didn't have a bad bone in their body was an evil dictator in this world. He had inkling that it was his fault, as well.

Dead. Well, it was bound to happen in one world. In others there was a high chance he probably was never even born, yet for some reason Damian believed he could have handled that news better in any other world. Most likely because his death in that world would lead to rule of the worst dictator, ruler known to man that uses child soldiers for their army. He had to hand to this version of Mary. She was cold, calculating, and cunning. Things he knew she was, but not to this extent. She had always been to empathetic. She always wore her heart on her sleeve, unlike the rest of them. Damian knew that out of all of them he'd sooner believe himself, his father and Grayson would sooner go to the dark side then Mary. So what would do this to her? Damian knew the answer, death. Death was the one thing since the beginning that made Mary shut down. She had a fear of hit since seeing her uncle murdered before her eyes at the age of 8. She never quite got over that fear, and with their line of work, she was going to have to get over it. Death was Mary's greatest fear. So put someone close to her dying again, and it was bound to have mental repercussions on her. No one would have guessed to such a scale though.

Damian kept running up the stairs. He needed to find that woman, the Lian Harper of this world. She would know where-! Damian's thoughts were cut short by being knocked into the ground by something. From the groaning her heard not just something, someone.

"Ouch, That hurt- Woah, Robin?!" Damian looked up at his name being called. It was thankfully Nightrix.

"You escaped!" He said relived. He thought escaping something Mary thought of would be difficult to get out of.

"Yeah, I had help actually-"

"Nightrix, I can't find the- DAMIAN!" He knew that voice so well that he didn't even have to look up to see who it was, or brace himself as she threw herself into his arms. "Holy crap, Damian! It really is you! I found Nightrix, and she told me she was with you, and we escaped that prisoner. Her brother's up there, and I'm soo glad to see you! Tonight's been terrible. I thought-"

"Mary!" If he didn't stop her, she'd be going on forever. "How did you get here?" He asked rightfully confused. She opened her mouth, but Damian stopped her, "Never mind. It's probably a long story and we don't have time. " Starling closed her mouth and nodded. He was right they didn't have time for this. Starling stood up brushed off her uniform and lent a helping hand to Damian to pull him up.

"Do either of you know where the TDT went?" Robin asked.

Both shook their head, but it was Nightrix who answered. "They took it off of me when we got captured." Damian nodded that's what he thought. Meaning there next stop was that their next stop was that general woman who had recognized him. Most likely on the 15th floor with still with the new trainees. She would know where the TDT went.

"Back to the 15th floor then," Damian said.

"Okay, I get that securities there, but what else?" Nightrix asked.

"Someone's who's going to tell us where the TDT is. Also that security room should answer some questions I have." He told them climbing the stair. In 5 minutes the power would return, meaning that the Red Queen will have even more in her favor to get to them. They had to work fast. Something still bothered Robin though. The Coup never happened. Why? He didn't know, but he was going to find out.

They had just gotten to the security room and cleared it when the lights had come back on and thus the power.

"Mary, do you think that you can find the security feed for the past 2 hours for the tunnels under Wayne Tower?" He asked Mary sat in the desk chair and gave it a little spin before turning back to the monitors.

"Consider it done." She told him lightly. She seemed just happy to be in the presence of someone she knew that she didn't particularly care if he was being bossy at the moment. Normally she's let him have it for ordering her around.

"Thank you." he told her. The thanks made Starling pause and look at him. He'd never thanked her for something mundane like hacking before. Something must have happened, she concluded, and went back to her work.

Meanwhile, Robin looked at the rest of the monitors. Just like he planned Lian Harper was still in the training room teaching the rest of the trainees. She, with her highly decorated uniform, would know where the TDT would be.

"There", Robin pointed at the monitor to the woman. Nightrix leaned foreword.

"That's the training lady. You think she knows where the TDT?" She asked.

"With her status, I would bet on it." Robin said. Starling moved her swivel chair to she, as well.

"I know that face." She turned to Damian. "You know I never forget a face. I know her. She's older, but I know her." Starling assured.

"I got that feeling, too" Damian agreed. "It;s this place's version of Lian Harper"

"It's Lian!" Starling paled at the notion. Now, that Starling had said it, Robin could see. On the screen was none other then Lian Harper. "It's Lian Harper, but Why would Lian be working with Alicia Royal? It doesn't make sense."

Robin bit his lip. "I wouldn't know." He lied. "So, you have that footage I asked for?" He changed the subject quickly. A feature noticed upon by both Starling and Nightrix, though both just went with it.

"Yeah, it's here..." Starling wheeled back towards the other monitor and played the footage. In it, Robin recognized the Rebellion forces. Robin also recognized them being slaughtered by The Red Queen's forces, all most as if they had been waiting for them.

"Oh Shit." Nightrix cursed, "And the trouble we went through just to get them here."

Starling frowned, "The Red Queen's forces were too well prepared. Something smells rotten."

"My sentiments exactly," Robin agreed. "Mary play the footage again." Replaying it, Robin noticed something very peculiar. "Nightrix do you see Antonio anywhere in that footage." Nightrix eyes scanned the video then turned up in a glare.

"That turncoat, double crossing ass-wipe! He planned this!"

"And we fell for it." Damian agreed. "We don't have time for revenge. We get the TDT. WE get Batman. We get the fuck out of here." Damian said. "General Harper should know exactly-"

"Damian." A voice sang coming from one of the screens. " I Know you're in the security. Just like I know you can see this right now." She told him. He froze. He didn't want Starling seeing her, at least not like this.

"Is that.." Of course, Mary would figure it in less than half of the time he did. She had always been better at that him. She was right, she never forgot a face especially her own.

"Alright, Damian. I admit You bested me back there and got away, but let's stop this game because I have what you want." In front of the camera she waved what they needed to get back home. The TDT. "I know you and your little friends escaped the holding area, as well. Listen. I'm going to cut you a deal because despite what you may believe. I'm still the Mary you know." Beside him Starling gave him a frightened, confused look. "I'll send all your little friends back where they belong. The only thing I wanted from this whole thing was you. If you stay, I'll let them go. I have no desire to even harm them, nor you. Come quietly, the one you came here for is already down here." The camera flashed to the injured Batman being held up by The Red Queen's Dolls. "Now, I'm sending a friend to come escort you all down here. So, no funny business." As if he heard her words the door opened revealing Antonio in the Doll uniform.

"Bertinelli," Robin growled. "What happened to the resistance?"

"Did you really think that the Red Queen would let any faction of Resistance live with in her City?" Antonio answered back with raised eyebrows. Robin didn't say anything only glaring. "That's what I thought. I only do my job." Nightrix snorted sarcastically.

Starling looked between them confused, "I don't know what's going on, but whatever." Walking out the room leaving the glaring contest behind her. Robin finally broke it off following after Starling.

"Bertinelli, Huh? You're a disgrace to that name." Nightrix sneered before leaving.

To Starling's dismay, the elevator ride was silent, and awkward. She still had no idea what was going on, though from how silently livid Robin looked, she guessed it was something serious. They entered the Red Queen's office. She was sitting calmly at her desk her child soldiers armed to the teeth around her. At least 10 highly trained killers stopping them from just grabbing the TDT and escaping. They had to think of a plan quickly, because they knew there was no way they could leave Damian.

"Hello, Damian." The Red Queen greeted with a smile. Her eyes found Starling, "Mary." She said with some loathing. "So how does your future look, Mary." She spoke standing from her desk. The soldiers dropped Nightrix's Batman. She ran to him, standing him up and supporting his weight.

Starling took a step back, "This isn't my future." She said with confidence. It wouldn't be she wouldn't let it.

"But." The Red Queen mused, "But it easily could be, and that's enough to scare you. One day, in your world, something could go wrong, and this is how you'll end up. You'll have to live with that fear. Tread lightly, Mary Grayson, because like it or not, I could be you."

Robin stepped in front of Starling blocking her from The Red Queen, "That's enough." He growled. He didn't like the way The Red Queen spoke to Starling, the way she spoke to herself. She seemed more hostile to the girl.

The Red Queen Laughed maniacally, "Oh Damian, always my protector. Seeing you as you are. You're younger than my Damian was, but still the same mostly. That ego, that glare, those will probably never change about you."

"What do you know about me? " Robin spat.

"So much and that's why I want you here. You're the only person I could give this world to, the only person smart enough to take over my empire. Gotham is my mine. The rest of the world doesn't dare send their heroes to confront me and my army. And in my old age, I need a successor. Who better than the heir of the demon himself?" She told them.

"But that's a problem for you isn't?" Robin interceded. "The Damian Wayne of this world died a long time ago, right? That's why you did this. Took over because I die in your world."

"You shouldn't have died!" The Red Queen yelled turning to him. "You think you're so smart, figuring that out. You're death only gave me the push I needed to do what was right. You can't let these idiotic humans run themselves. They only know death and suffering. You humans have caused more wars with each other than any other alien race."

"You're evil." Starling stared at her other self with wide eyes.

"Evil is a relative term. Yes, to your eyes I am evil, but I had to become this to stop the war. Heroes, Meta and non killing each other left and right. If I didn't step in. If i didn't save the world with my army, you find so evil. That war would still be going on. So, I will kindly accept your label as "evil'" what else was I supposed to become?"

"Anything!" Starling shouted. Moving from behind Robin she stepped towards the Red was never one to cower behind anybody "You could have done anything. Our father and mother taught us to use our talents to help others. Not take over, and rule. We are no ones god. We can not condemn and rule them. Who are you to rule over them? It's not your place." Before Starling could continue the Red Queen's arm reached out grabbing Starling by the throughout and dangling her off the ground.

"I hate you." She spat. "Everything that you stand for, the life that should have been mine. You of all people can't judge my actions. You are me. " She threw Starling to the ground harshly, "I've changed my mind." the Red Queen spoke. She pulled a gun out of her jacket and aimed it Starling. She unlocked the safety. "Damian, You stay, and the rest of your friends are free to go, except this **_little mouthy Bitch!_**" She said uncharacteristically loud. "She dies. **_Just like I should have so long ago!_**"

It all happened to quickly for anyone to really see. One second the Red Queen is pulling the trigger on the gun. Robin screams and run towards her to stop her. Nightrix struggles to support her brother, and help Robin and Starling with guns pointed at them. Oddly enough, Starling doesn't scream. She does not accept her fate, because she knows she wasn't going to die today. She only glares at what this universe version of herself has become. Then a gun shot his heard. Starling never looked away. She never blinked because she wasn't afraid, and what she saw was her death. The Red Queen had missed her shot, and blood began to stain her clothes. In the window, and hole the size of a high-caliber bullet, capable of going through the glass. Mary Grayson had been shot, but it was not Starling that was dying today. The Red Queen falls to the ground clutching her torso.

"What?" She ask confused as she finally lays down, blood pooling on the white tiled floors.

The soldiers reactions were instantaneous. They pointed there guns at the four heroes as if they were the culprits to the Red Queen's assassination. They were more than ready to take their lives for only being in the room.

"Stand down." Commanded Antonio stepping forward, pulling out a cigarette. He walked towards the fallen red Queen and stood over her.

"but, My Lord." said one of the soldiers.

Antonio shot them a glare, "I won't ask again." On the floor he knelt not caring about the blood around him.

"Tony?" She asked confused. "You- Why?" She asked tears beginning to fall.

"I'm sorry, Aunt Mary, but it had to be done." He spoke before standing up, and blew out some smoke from his cigarette. "You can come out now, Shiva. Mission complete." The door opened, and in stepped the greying Lady Shiva.

"Sin? This was you." The red Queen hissed from the ground. "You've betrayed me twice now."

"Yes, and I would do it more for all the times you've made me betray myself." Lady Shiva answered simply.

"It wasn't supposed to turn out like this." In her voice. Robin heard something he hadn't heard since he meet the Red Queen. The part of her that sounded like the Mary he knew. The insecurity, the pain that life had dealt on her, and the remorse. The life. The whole Robin felt like it was a puppet of Mary's image and not actually herself until this moment. In this moment he realized that the older woman on the ground and the young girl just across from her were the same person. The Red Queen used the last bit her her strength turned her head towards Robin. There was a glimmer of something in her eyes that Robin couldn't identity before the life faded from them. The Red Queen had died.

"I'm terribly sorry for all of that." Antonio apologized breaking the silence, and cutting through the heavy atmosphere.

"I'll say." Nightrix said. "What the hell is going on? We deserve an explanation!"

Robin turned to Antonio, "I can tell you what's going on. He used us. Not once, but twice. So the tapes we saw of the resistance getting slaughtered underground."

"They went down there knowing it was a suicide mission. There was no chance of any of them coming out alive. It was a necessary loss." Antonio told them unfazed with the fact that more than 100 people died down there. "The Red Queen needed to be dealt with. Their sacrifice was needed and will always be remembered. "

"Why didn't you go down there and die then." Robin told him. Antonio didn't respond to the teenaged boy's words only turning to the soldiers in the room.

"I want every Doll aware of the fact that I am in charge now. Also find Generals Scarlet, Harper, and West. I want them arrested. " He told them. They nodded, and in unison left the room with a "Yes, Sir."

"Thank you for your help." Lady Shiva told them. "Without you, we couldn't have ended the Red Queen's reign."

"Yeah, well, I'm not to keen on being apart of an assassination." Nightrix said sardonically "Keep your thanks to yourself." To her right Robin nodded.

"I was her most trusted Doll, and she never even dropped her guard around me. So yes, I believe thanks are in order." Antonio stated. "She instantly came out into the open when she heard you were here, Robin."

Robin frowned, "Like she said, Don't mention it."

"What will you do know?" Starling asked. With the Red Queen now died what happens to Gotham.

Antonio shrugged. "As far as who takes her place, The Red Queen named me her successor. Though she never really wanted me to be that. I'll take over until we can get the city integrated back with the rest of the world. She cut us off, built walls twenty years ago to keep her people in. From there I don't know what will happen, but anything is better than rule under the Red Queen." Antonio walked over to the desk, took the TDT and threw it to Robin, "But I know you all are going home."

Robin didn't bother to thank him. He only took the TDT to Starling, and offered to take a hold of her brother in her stead. She kindly accepted the offer. As Starling moved to join them. They didn't say anything as all of them went into the portal and disappeared from Antonio's sight. He removed the cigarette from his mouth and blew out smoke. He knew that this universe had a long way to go before it could go back to what it was.

When Starling blinked again they were in a futuristic version of the Batcave. It was more of a hub of Gotham heroes now. She stared in awe, hoping that maybe this is what her future could look like and not the one she just witnesses.

"I Need A Medic!" Nightrix screamed, and suddenly a stretcher with a some masked heroes cam running took Batman from Robin's grasp, and took him away to treat his wounds.

"Rookie!" A young voice shouted. Flipping down some stairs was the same little boy Robin had come across in this universe before. This universe's Robin.

"Robin, Code names in the cave only." She reprimanded with a sigh. Again.

"Sorry, Nightrix." He amended. "We were worried about you. The Commander wouldn't stop pacing and everything. Did you get back Batman? "

Nightrix nodded, " I did. Did you guys finish up things on this end?" The boy nodded.

"There finding the last one right now, we've decided to send them all home at once. You guys can follow me up to the lab." He said before, like a child running up the stairs. Starling giggled, The boy was younger than her.

"Sorry about him." Nightrix apologized again, and began climbing up the stairs. Starling and Robin followed close behind.

"You okay?" Starling asked Robin.

He snorted, "After all the things I've seen today. No, but I will be."

"Couldn't agree more." Starling said with a sigh. They finally reached the top of the steps where the rest of their universe Batfamily was waiting.

"Starling!" Nightwing shouted and ran up to her. "Thank god! They said they were having trouble locating you." He told her "How did you end up with, Robin?"

Starling and Robin sighed at the same time, "Its a long story," She said. "Are we all set to go?" She asked. All Starling really wanted right now was to be back in her own universe.

"Almost, We only now started looking for Oracle." NIghtwing admitted with an embarrassed blush. Starling blinked at her father confused.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, we forgot she was in the cave, too." He told them. Robin and Starling stared blankly at nightwing.

Robin snorted holding back a laugh, "What?"

"You forgot Oracle!" Starling shouted horrified. "How?"

Nightwing pointed at Batman, their batman, and said, "It's all Bruce's fault he told us to grab each other so we'll end up with at least somebody we know. He miscounted though, we weren't an even number. Oracle ended up somewhere by herself."

"She's going to kill you." Robin said stating the obvious.

Nightwing deflated, "I know. Still, anything is better then where Batgirl and I ended up. One word Zombies. Two words, Never again."

"Here, here!" Batgirl shouted in agreement.

"Oh please, Goldie. Cass and I ended up dodging amazons and a crazy homicidal Wonder Woman. I'll take the Zombies." Jason snorted with Black Bat nodding next to him.

"They had razor teeth!" Batgirl said

"And one had Chainsaw!"

"I got stuck in world where everyone that's a hero in our world is a villain in that one. " Red Robin said joining the conversation. "Alfred and I didn't know who to trust."

"You trust everyone that's evil in our world." Robin said dryly, "Idiot." Red Robin glared at the younger Robin.

"Been to that one." Batman said. "It's not that bad, but I still say Hood and Black Bat had the worst." Nightwing and Batgirl protested.

Batwing laughed, "Yeah, the world Batman and I ended up in wasn't that bad. The only thing was that their was no such thing as Batman in Gotham. There was still a Catwoman however, and her team. Trust me, it was awkward."

"Awkward how?" Nightwing asked. Batman didn't meet his eyes.

"Guys, look." Black bat called, "I think Oracle's coming through." And just like she said, Oracle rolled down the platform. Out of all of them, she looked worse for the wear. Her white button up was now missing the sleeves and the bottom half it entirely. Her pants were ripped and now resembled shorts more than anything. Her shoes were gone, and her hair was ragged being held back by her now broken glasses.

"Babs, Oh my god. Are you okay?" Batgirl asked.

"Yeah, just ended up with dinosaurs. I'm all good though." She said. She wasn't injured, she just looked terrible. She didn't dwell on how a woman in a wheelchair handled being stuck with dinosaurs, but then again this was Barbara Gordon they were talking about. They decided it would be better just not to ask.

"Alright, Ive set the coordinates to your Batcave in your universe." The blonde haired Nightwing of Nightrix's universe. "It's time for you all to go home."

"Thank God!" Batgirl said racing to the portal. "I'm in major need of a shower."

"Seconded." Batwing proclaimed and followed her into the portal.

"Thank you for helping us." Batman told the twins before heading into the portal with Red Robin by he's side asking how they built this size of a portal in that amount of time. He had to be pushed in(very harshly) by Red Hood so he would stop talking. Black nodded a thanks to them, as well and her and Alfred went through the portal.

"Starling?" Nightwing asked. She stayed behind with Robin instead of heading through the portal.

"Go on, dad. Just give us a moment. " She told him. He nodded and headed back home with out her. Robin and Starling turned back to Nightrix.

"I wanted to thank you for helping me get my brother back." Nightrix spoke to them. "He's not done as Batman yet, and I don't know what we would have done with out you."

"Probably handled that situation a lot better. " Robin answered.

"No seriously. Thank you, you too Starling. If you handed showed up when you did, we'd still be stuck with The Red Queen in her prison." Starling waved her off.

"It wasn't like I meant to be there, it was just luck."

"Yeah, but whatever it was I still owe you guys a lot. You helped me save my brother." Nightrix said. "Don't take this the wrong way, but I sincerely hope we never meet again."

"Agreed." Robin said. Nightrix shook both their hands before careful not to shake Robin's injured one, and just as swiftly as they came Robin and Starling left Nightrix's universe.

School was something that Mary was glad to go to. She liked school. It kept her busy, it gave her a place away from her nightly activities, and it gave her time to think about what she saw on her last mission.

* * *

The bell signaling the middle schoolers to their third periods rang as Mary and Kevin walked across the quad. Across the way she could see Damian laying in grass underneath one of the many trees. Mary sighed. He didn't look like he would be moving anytime soon. That meant that Damian had decided to skip third period. It was his art class, but still Mary thought that going to all classes were important when they could, as they miss a lot of it. Still, something she knew she needed to say to Damian before she did anything else. The mission opened her eyes to a lot of the things, and she wanted to make sure that her world didn't end up the those other two she saw. The Third was nice from what she could tell, but Mary definitely didn't want anything that happened in those worlds to happen in this one, and that meant words needed to be said to Damian.

"Riri?" Kevin called out. He stared at her worried. Kevin had been on her case since he had saw her in San Francisco at the Competition. He was getting closer to learning her secret meaning that they were growing apart. Bruce had already talked to her about it. Kevin would get to close one day, she had to make sure it doesn't happen.

"Oh sorry, I didn't realize I stopped walking." Mary apologized. She gave him a sheepish grin, and glanced back at Damian. She needed to tell him now. "Listen, Kev. Head to class without me. I'll catch up when I catch up. Okay?" She told him. Kevin looked behind her Towards Damian before nodding.

"Fine, Mary. Just don't miss practice after school again. I'll come up with something to tell, Ms. Mcolly." He told her before turning away. "Tell Damian I said hi." With a wave Kevin headed off to class leaving Mary to her conversation with Damian.

"What do you want, Tiny Grayson?" He asked her. He's eyes was closed. He was resting. Mary knew he didn't sleep as often as he should. He never really let his guard down to sleep. Her eyes flittered to his wrapped up hand. He never told her how exactly he got, but in a way she knew. Knives were her favorite weapon.

"Came to talk." She told him simply. He opened one eye and looked at her.

"Aren't you supposed to be in english class. Last I checked that was your worst subject. Go study and leave me alone." He told her. Mary sighed and sat down next to him. He was in one of his moods. Great, that would make it so much easier. she thought to herself sarcastically.

"If I leave, I'm telling Bruce you skipped class again." She threatened "What's the punishment for this offense? Washing all of the cars?"

She saw Damian visible stiffen, "No, all of the vehicles. " He corrected.

"Ouch, not a job anyone wants to do considering he just flew the jet through Clayface. I suggest you listen to what I have to say, and you'll have your weekend free still." He sat up and looked at her seriously.

"Fine, Mary. What do you want?"

"Like I said to talk."

"About the last mission." He finished for her. Was she that transparent?

"Yes." Mary nodded. "I'm being serious here, Damian. So, I think you should take what I say with some weight. You don't have to listen to me. I'm not ordering you around, or telling you what to do. I'm just giving you my honest opinion here."

Damian rolled his eyes, "Just spit it out, girl, God."

"Damian, I think you should stop fighting with Bruce." She told him finally just getting to the point.

"Excuse me?" He said. He was taken off guard by her comment.

"Yeah, I know, but hear me out."

"Hear you out? Mary, you've have had absolutely nothing to say about for the past what? Year and 4 months, and now you want to give me your two cents." He was a little upset. She had expected that.

"I know. I said, just hear me out okay. Let me start from the beginning. " She told him. "The world I went to was very different from out own, and very similar. I learned a lot of things, and I should do something with what I've learned, Right?" She asked rhetorically. "Long story short, I met you, Damian. You were older, and were still very much the same, and you were Nightwing. I realize how different you were until it was too late." She told him all in one go. Mary paused trying to find the right words. "What I'm saying is, That version of Damian was colder, meaner, and crueler. I didn't like it very much, and I was less then pleased to have learned exactly what he's done. That Damian had no one from his family to rely upon, he was alone. The Damian and the Bruce from that world weren't...Haven't been getting along since he was about your age. I don't want to see you like that." Mary admitted.

"You and Bruce are very headstrong and stubborn, but I'm asking you for once is to concede the fight. I don't think people were meant to stay made at each other for this long. I won't lie it scares me that it has gone on for this long. Not only that you never talk about it. I know what happened, Damian, but that woman dying was not your fault no matter how much Bruce implies it is. That was a hard choice you made, but at the end of the day,_ it wasn't your fault._ I believe that. My dad believes that. Alfred believes and deep down I know Bruce believes it, too. He's at fault here for being to harsh on you, but I think that you share some of the blame too. I'm scared if you don't make up now, their won't be a relationship to fix later. I know I choose to stay out of it earlier, but not anymore. Not after the things I've seen. " She finished taking a deep breathe.

At first, Damian didn't say anything. He didn't even look at her only looked out and up at the sky. "You know." He finally said. "I thought I failed my father. I blamed myself playing what happened over and over again in my head. I realized then that, there was nothing I could have done. If I would have saved the woman, my father would have died, and I know he dislikes me for making that choice, but it was the choice I made. Her injuries were so severe that even if I saved her she probably would have died in the hospital anyway. " Mary was slightly she shocked. She had expected him to take her words to heart, but open up to her. No, she didn't see that coming at all.

"All in all, I can't feel bad that I saved my father over some civilian woman." He finished. He turned to Mary. "Consider your words taken to heart. I can't guarantee that my father and are just going to magically stop fighting, but I'll try to patch things up."

Mary nodded. "I just want you to try. I saw and learned some horrible things that could have happened. I prefer if they didn't carry over to this universe."

"And you?" He asked her.

"What?" She asked confused.

"Just because we traveled Dimensions doesn't mean that the topic of Alicia Royal is any less prevalent. I'd say it's even more now that we know she plans to use these children for her army. We've seen what one Red Queen can accomplish. I'd rather not see another one. Plus, there's the fact about your missing memories."

Mary sighed. "I know for a fact that this was my plan. Now that we've seen me as the Red Queen there's no denying that I was the one who gave the Red Queen her plan on how to build an army. I could have planned so much more, but I can't remember. If I did, we'd be one step ahead of her, and could probably catch her."

Damian shrugged. "We'll find out something. Maybe father well talk to that Martian, or Drake will talk to his. We'll figure something out we always do." Mary nodded her head. Yeah, he was right. They always find solutions. Why should this time be any different.

* * *

**_Final Word Count: 15,774_**

**_Whole Word count: 28, 213_**

_A/N: Displacement was a fucking monster to write mostly because of it's length. Single space in word it's about 75 pages. I wrote a whole book instead of z chapter. So I apologize for it's length. I do love this chapter though. It's emotional filled with action. It's definitely one of my favorites to write. I hope you enjoy it as well. I guess could be taken as my approval over the Convergence Plot-line. I loved reading Convergence, and I would love to know your feelings on it, now that the multiverse is officially canon again! _

_Funny story, this chapter was originally about 32,000 words before I made cuts while editing. I cut flashbacks from Mar'i Anders-Grayson. After a while I felt that I was dumbing it down for you guys by giving you them. You all are very intelligent and I want you to form your own conjectures about the story and it's subplots. I don't have to spoon feed you everything. That's something I believe a lot of writers forget. Why say what is already understood? Of course, if anything is confusing and you don't follow the story tell me immediately. I know my mind is very weird, and I see things that many. I know it's possible I wasn't clear on many things. So I hope this chapter wasn't terrible. _

_Fun fact, all the Mary Graysons in my story have varying names. They all don't share the same name. Injustice Mari, or Supergirl was Mari Anders-Grayson, The Mary we know Is Mary Stella Grayson, and the evil Red Queen Mary is actually Mary Donna Grayson though I never did say that in the chapter. _

_As always special thanks to my reviewers **21 is Awesome, Nightwing0126, and Addicted2Books13.** You guys are amazing. Thank you so much for your reviews. They really do help!_

_If you have any questions/concerns/comments please review. I'm happy to answer any and all of for time!_

_~Miyu K. June 13, 2015_


	16. Gotham's Best 5

**_Gotham's Best 5_**

_Coming of Age_

Starling marveled at the city before her. It never got old to her. The way it twinkled like the stars in the night sky. Starling could easily say that her favorite thing about the planet she now called home was the how beautiful the nights were. There was something quiet and oddly beautiful about the nights on Earth. The short hours between nightfall and sunrise were something she loved witnessing and it made her job oh so much easier to bear on nights like this one.

Technically, neither she nor Damian was supposed to be patrolling tonight. It was the beginning of April and spring break was coming in a couple days. Mary would be spending the whole break at a Dance convention in Hawaii, and Damian would be helping Tim out in Brazil with the South American part of Wayne Enterprises. Bruce wanted them to take the night off and rest before they leave tomorrow, but they hadn't listened and decided to stay out at least until midnight. Damian griped about, but Mary knew the longer they stayed out the more trouble they would be in.

Damian was apparently asked by Bruce to accompany Tim to Brazil. Of course, Damian wasn't happy about it, but Bruce felt the boy needed to get out of town. Damian had been on edge as of lately, so really Mary didn't blame Bruce for thinking Damian needed to get out of Gotham. In fact, his current state of anxiety confused Mary. Damian should be happy, especially at a time like this.

Throughout Gotham, the giant clanging from the Clock tower rang twelve times. It was midnight. A new day had begun.

Starling turned to Robin, "Happy fourteenth birthday, Damian!" She sang before jumping on him, giving him a big hug. He shrugged her off. Starling stared at him confused, Robin usually groaned when she gave him hugs, but usually sat through it, "What's wrong?" She asked.

He didn't say anything only pulling out his grapple gun and launching it across the street. "Let's get back. We still have school tomorrow." He's said before swinging away. Starling stared at him curiously. He wasn't in a hurry before to leave in early. Starling fired her gun and caught up with her partner on top the building across the street. He never turned to acknowledge her presence, though to Starling it seemed that he was waiting for her.

"What's eating you?" She asked. Robin was normally moody, but this was extreme. He had been quiet all night he wasn't even condescending to the gang they took down earlier. Starling wondered if he were sick or something. "Robin?"

"It's nothing." He hissed harshly at her. "It's not any of your goddamn business. I'm just ready to get out of Gotham, okay? Is that enough for you?" Starling took a step back. She must have pushed him harder than she thought if he was at this point with her, or he was more on edge than she originally thought. Starling looked at Robin, really looked at him. His shoulders were tense and his jaw stayed clenched. He really looked like a mini-Batman at the moment, however, the uneasiness of his stance took the intimidation of it away. Starling barely caught it but she knew she saw it, Robin looking around over his shoulder as if something could lunge at him at any moment.

"Sorry," Starling said. "I didn't mean to bother you." Her eyes narrowed staring at her partner.

Robin sighed, "It's whatever." Starling raised her eyebrows. That was the closest thing she was going to get to an apology. "Let's just get off the streets." He ran off without looking a back for her this time. Robin would tell her what's wrong later...Maybe.

* * *

Mary woke up in the morning as usual. 5 hours of sleep was a godsend. Normally it was only about half an hour to two hours, and on those terribly unlucky days she couldn't fall asleep for days on end, too busy. Mary's shower was short, what took long was washing her hair. It was far too long. Though she couldn't bare to cut it. It reminded her of her mother. Though Sometimes when Mary stared in the mirror, she glared at that hair with contempt. Mary contemplated cutting it, but couldn't bare the idea. It was part of her identity.

The Gotham Academy uniform was one that most of the students hated, but Mary adored it. She found it cute, and couldn't understand the hate in gathered. By 7 o'clock Mary was ready for school. Alfred usually arrived by 7:30 to take her and Damian to school, but lately Damian hadn't wanted to come to school with her, instead making Alfred take me even earlier than Mary went. It didn't upset Mary too much, she knew sometimes Damian liked to be by himself. So instead of making Alfred take so many trips, Mary had asked her father would take her to school. He had early classes to teach most days anyway. Sadly, this also meant that Mary had the pleasure of waking him up.

"Dad," Mary called. Of course, he didn't answer save a murmur, that made Mary sigh. He had to get up or he would miss his class. "Daddy!" This time, her voice was louder, shorter, and sharper. It got his attention.

"I'M UP!" He flailed. The covers went wild around the bed before he noticed his daughter and forced himself awake, with a yawn. "Oh. Morning, Starshine. What's up?" He asked.

"Dad, can you take me to school?" She asked. If there was any sleep left in Dick Grayson it was gone immediately. "Sure. Mary, I'll take you to school." He father answered her. "Just let me get ready." Mary nodded and got out the way so Dick could get out of the bed. He walked to his dresser and started pulling out clothes.

"Sure. Mary, I'll take you to school." He father answered her. "Just let me get ready." Mary nodded and got out the way so Dick could get out of the bed. He walked to his dresser and started pulling out clothes.

"I've got that gym class to teach this morning, right?" He asked.

"Yup. It's the college students. I'm sure you regret taking that partnership with Gotham University now." Mary joked. Dick chuckled.

"I wish I could. Those kids are so much fun that I often forget that I'm there so early in the morning. One day when you don't have school you need to come by and show them what you can do. They still don't believe that you can beat all of them on the uneven bars." Dick grabbed his clothes and headed to the shower.

"Sounds fun," She answered as he closed the door. He showered much quicker than Mary ever could and walked out dressed no less than 15 minutes later.

"You eat?" He asked. Mary nodded. He always got onto her about that. Mary didn't like eating in the mornings, but her father practically made her. With as much physical activity she put in a day she needed the calories. "Alright, let's go."

The car ride wasn't long. In fact, it seemed shorter now that she didn't have Damian in the car with her. "So, you going to tell me what's going on?" Dick asked still driving.

"Pardon?" Mary asked. To her knowledge, she hadn't been acting any different for him to ask her that.

"What's going on? You're avoiding Damian, right? Or is it the other way around? I mean three straight weeks of me taking you to school." Mary bit the inside of her cheek at her father's words. He was right on the money, and she barely said anything, Like always. " So, I ask for the third time. What's going on?"

Mary sighed. She thought she was good at reading people, but her father had perfected the art. "It's nothing too big, or dramatic. Just thought Damian needed space." Mary answered. It was the truth. He seemed to have a lot on his mind last night, well, technically this morning.

"I know he can be moody, just don't let it get to you," Dick said throwing a glance at her in the rearview mirror.

"That's not it," Mary said with a shake of her head. "You remember it's his birthday today, right?"

Dick nodded, "Of course, I'm the one that remembers birthdays in this family."

"Yeah, well, Damian didn't seem to happy about his 14th birthday last night( Not that he was a happy person to begin with). He just seemed extra somber. He said he wanted to get out of Gotham." Dick didn't say anything at first only thinking about what his daughter told him.

"I understand your worry." He finally answered. "But what Damian is feeling is understandable. He hasn't really been out of the city for a while. Normally, Bruce likes to take us places even for a short amount of time. He hasn't done that since you come along."

Mary stared up at her father. "Bruce used to take you guys on vacation?" She asked astonished. Dick laughed a little.

"I wouldn't call it that..." He said. "If anything major happened we'd have to be back in Gotham in no time, but I guess you could call them retreats... For training. The places differed each time. He understood the need to get out of the city for a breather, but lately, it hasn't been possible. Damian's probably just got cabin fever, that's why Bruce is sending him with Tim. They'll have fun together, and Damian will be back to his usually grumpy self in no time flat." As he said the words the car stopped at Gotham Academy. "Don't worry about it too much, Mary." Mary nodded.

"Are you coming to competition in Hawaii?" Mary asked a little hopeful. Her father tried to make the ones he could, but Hawaii was far. She'd understand if he couldn't make it.

"I'm on the Watchtower all weekend. So, if you send me your dance times I'll see if I can cheat and have them transport me down to watch you, but you know the rules." He told her.

Mary rolled her eyes, "Yeah, Yeah. If they call you, you have to go. Come on, Dad. I think I realized that when you, Bruce, Tim, and Damian ran out of my first dance competition because Two-Face robbed a bank. I'm used to it now. This is no different."

"Hey, at least, Babs and Stephanie stayed," Dick said. "Alright, I'll try to see if I can see you before you leave today, if not, have fun. Kick some ass. Bring home that first place trophy." Mary hugged her father.

"You got it." Mary hopped out of the car and waved, "Bye, I love you."

"Love you, too." He dramatically blew her a kiss, making Mary return the favor. A tradition that Mary honestly doesn't remember how it started. Just something silly they do. Mary waved once more as her dad drove away before turning and heading towards the school.

Gotham Academy was the most prestigious private school in Gotham City. It was mostly a boarding school to most of the students. Either the rich parents wanted nothing to do with their children and sent them to the academy, they were on scholarship, or they commuted. Mary was the last option. Honestly, she shuttered to think of what it would be like to go to a boarding school. Tim and Bruce had horror stories about them, and Mary wasn't too keen on finding out if they were true for herself.

It didn't take too long for Mary's friends to find her with Kevin leading them she wasn't surprised.

"Riri," Kevin called out, "You ready to destroy the competition." He high-fived his dance partner before boasting. "The Madame gave us the best choreography ever. There's no way that first place trophy isn't ours."

"Chill out, Thompson. I'm sure Carrie and I can give you two a run for your money." Sherrie said. Sherrie and her twin Carrie were younger than Mary and Kevin but have danced just as long. They usually preferred dancing together. Mary could honestly say the two girls had such good unison work that they might actually beat them this competition.

"Sherrie, we should worry about the other dance teams, not our own," Carrie said. She had always been the calmer sister. Sherrie was competitive which caused her to often but heads with the strong-headed Kevin.

"Carrie's right. We need to worry about our own house first" Braxton said. "You are coming to this competition, right?" Mary almost didn't think that Braxton was talking to her.

"Yeah, of course," Mary replied. "I make it to most of the competitions. I don't bail that often." No one replied. The group only gave Mary disbelieving looks. "What?"

"Umm, Riri." Kevin started slowly. "I don't know how to tell you this, but you've missed a little more than half of the competitions that we've done this year..." Mary blinked in disbelief. She missed a few, but not that many. They practically had a competition every weekend. It was only April. She couldn't have missed that many.

"Yeah," Braxton continued. "And you always pull out last minute. Is there something more important going on? When you first joined you weren't that busy, but now..." Mary bit the inside of her lip. She hadn't realized she's been neglecting dance. Up until now Mary thought that she had been balancing her life pretty well. She hadn't realized she was wrong.

Mary honestly didn't know what to say, "...I'm sorry. You know, with my grandpa it's hard. Things come up Last-"

"We know, we know." Sherrie cut Mary off. "Bruce Wayne is a very important person. And things happen. Sometimes I just wish that the team mattered more to you for 5 seconds, Mary, then some press conference about the Gotham City water supply. Does your face on the tv really matter that much?"

"It's not like that." Mary pleaded. "I don't even like the press conferences or even the galas. No one in my family does, but in order for the company to have partners we have to play nice. I care about the team, I really do."

"Well, it feels like you don't sometimes," Sherrie said.

"Sherrie..." Carrie cautioned before her sister could open her mouth and say something else. Sherrie always did speak her mind.

"No." Sherrie insisted, "She needs to hear-"

"Sheryl!" Kevin called out. "Shut up." He said firmly, and for once she listened, but Mary already felt smaller and smaller. The damage was done.

"Listen, we don't have a problem. Just come to more competitions, okay?" Carrie said. Mary nodded. She would try, but she knew she couldn't promise anything. She wouldn't promise something she knew she had no way of keeping.

"Come on, guys," Kevin said trying to lighten up the mood. "I'm sure the cafeteria is still selling breakfast, and I want an apple. Let's go." They walked in silence for the most part. Kevin would spare Mary a glance, and Mary did want she did best. She squared her shoulders, held her head high, and walked with a purpose. Confidence was the easiest thing to fake, and right now Mary needed it to look like the words of her friends didn't affect her. No one was allowed to see her have a bad day, not anyone here at least. She had to keep up pretenses, right?

Just as soon as they hit the cafeteria a scream rang through the commons area.

"That came from outside!" Mary shouted before taking off running towards the direction she heard the scream. Mary thought she heard Kevin calling after her, but she didn't have time to wait for him. Someone was in trouble.

She eventually found the source of the scream, a girl crying in the arms of none other than Damian Wayne. What caused the scream, Mary only had to look up to find out what. There hanging from a rope in front of the Art Building was the art teacher, Mrs. Winters. She was dead, it wouldn't take a coroner to figure out how. Her corpse was bloodied, and an oriental dagger was still in its place in her chest. She hung there slowly dripping blood down and behind her a message, thankfully not written in blood, but in Arabic. Mary could read it. Her Arabic was pretty good, She felt the blood drain from her face as she read the message over and over willing it not to be true. Not here, not now.

"Damian..." Mary trailed off after reading the message.

"Call Father," He ordered still tending to the distraught girl in his arms. Mary felt a hand on her shoulder causing her jump she turned around to find Kevin and the rest of her friends. They had followed her.

"Mary, What's going on? Is that the art teacher?" Kevin asked. He was anything but calm. His hand was trembling, and he was pale. He looked as if he were going to throw up. A normal reaction considering the traumatic scene behind Mary. Behind him, both Sherrie and Carrie did just Rancid smell of puke reached Mary's sensitive nose almost causing her to heave, but she had to keep it together. A crowd of students was now beginning to gather around making their way to the scene.

"Kevin, get them out of here," Mary said. "Keep the students away from here. This is now a crime scene. Damian, did you call the police?" Mary asked. He only grunted indicating that he did not. "Get security here, they'll call the police," Mary told her friends.

"What?" He was confused, disoriented. That was understandable. She knew what he felt like.

"Kev, focus. " Mary snapped in his face. She couldn't have him panicking now, she needed him coherent. "Keep the students away. Can you and Braxton do that?" Both boys nodded. "Good. Are any of the girls in good enough shape to get security?"

Sherrie stood up and wiped her mouth. She was a little pale, tears falling down her face. "I can. Come on, Carrie." She said in between sobs. She grabbed her sister and was quick to get away from the area. With her friends out of the way, Mary could now get the work.

"I'm guessing she was the first one on the scene, Damian," She asked.

"She's Mariah Winters, Mrs. Winters' daughter. We have Honors art class together for our first period." He knew protocol already, she didn't even need to ask him a thing. "I've been with her all morning, since 6, working on an art project for the expo coming up. Mrs. Winters left a little after I got here to get the clay projects from the oven. We went looking for her after a while. Mariah ran ahead of me and found her first. Whoever did this is probably long gone by now." Damian clenched his jaw. He's eyes slid towards the body of. They harden at the scene. He was angry. As if he had been able to stop this

"Considering, I wouldn't be surprised." Mary bit her lip. Now of all times, they would be making a move. She pulled out her phone and dialed Bruce's number. He answered on the first ring. "Bruce? Yeah," Mary looked up towards the body. "I think you need to come here. We've got a problem, Like a League of Shadows problem."

* * *

Bruce was there with Tim at his side in less than 10 minutes. They almost got there faster than the cops. By then Mary and Damian had been able to hand the crying Mariah Winters off to some of her friends and stand by waiting for Bruce to show up. Security had eventually come kicking them out of the area where the body was, but by then they had everything they needed.

"I assume you have pictures since the crime scene is no longer available to us," Bruce said.

Damian and Mary snorted. "Of course." Mary handed the man her phone.

Tim took the phone from Bruce Before plugging it into the laptop he brought with him. He studied the pictures for a moment. "Well, this is a simple one. It's obviously the League of Shadows doing this. That dagger is one of there's I believe, but you already knew that." Everyone in the car nodded. "Tracking them down is going to be the hard part, but that shouldn't be too big of an issue. Heir of the Demon's Head, beware for the test begins." Tim translated the message from Arabic to English that was written on the walls. "This is talking about you, Damian." It wasn't a question, but a statement.

"It is," Damian confirmed.

"This is what you've been nervous about?" Mary asked. "You knew this was coming."

"No! I knew- I didn't think like this. I didn't think that my grandfather would go through with it. In fact, I'm not his heir anymore, I was disowned." Damian admitted, his hands formed fist shaking ever so slightly.

"So this is the beginning of a test for you," Bruce said.

"No, it hasn't started yet. This is a message, a warning," Damian answered. "The Test of Succession begins at sundown, as it has always is telling me that I am still expected to take the test," He spat the last part of that sentence out as if he was completely disgusted with the idea of it.

"You're not an al Ghul anymore so, you're not taking that test." Damian's head flew up at Tim's words. "We'll put a stop to this. We're not letting anyone else die, and that includes you, Damian."

"Agreed," Bruce said. "What is the test?"

Damian sighed. He looked at his father seriously, "The Test of Succession is mental endurance. Once in their hands, they will torture me both physically and psychologically, When I break mentally..." Damian paused over his words letting them sink in. "They'll put me down." Mary took notice to the use of when and not if. Damian didn't think he was going to pass Ra's test.

"What!" Mary shouted.

"You're kidding!" Tim exclaimed.

"That makes it easier to protect you. Luckily Assassins won't be everywhere in the city." Bruce said carefully. He looked his son in the eye and said with the utmost confidence. "They won't get to you. I can promise that."

"If you think it will be easy at all, then you don't know the Shadows as well as you think, Father," Damian told him. "All those who have taken the test perished. Grandfather created it for those who had enough gall to want to become the heir of the demon. It's meant to create fear for the head family, and to keep anyone from challenging my grandfather." Damian said.

"Tim, call everyone," Bruce ordered. "Our main priority is to make sure that everyone in Gotham stays safe."

"Got it. I'm just going to assume that includes the Birds of Prey. I'll pull Dick from monitor duty. If Ra's is really after Damian he won't make this easy. I'll put everyone on high alert, he's already one step ahead of us." Tim said.

Bruce turned back to the children. "You two sort everything out here at school. I expect both of you back here in fifteen minutes so that we will be at the manor in 30 minutes. Don't be late." Of course, no one argued. Things had gotten serious. Ra's al Ghul had threatened Damian once again. Bruce was furious. The clench of his jaw and the hard gaze told Mary that was the case. It seemed that the immortal had yet to learn. Messing with the Bat's family was a one-way ticket to a full body cast.

"We'll be here" Mary answered. "We were supposed to leave school early anyway. In light of things, they'll probably cancel school." Bruce stayed silent. He didn't seem to care about what they needed to accomplish as long as they did in the designated time.

Mary and Damian got out of the car and went their separate ways. Damian went to go check on Mariah one last time while Mary went to tell her dance team that she wouldn't be heading to Hawaii with them after all.

The school had everyone gathered in the cafeteria. Children were scared muttering about the Arabic message that some kid had actually translated, but none knew what it meant.

Ibn al Xu'ffasch

It roughly translates to Son of the Bat. Luckily, the message doesn't particular make any sense to the normal public, or else Ra's might have exposed them all, but to all who knew... It was Damian's first name, He's Arabic name. It unnerved Mary how close Ra's got to them at school. Finding out Damian's schedule was child play for anyone who knew of him, being so public there wasn't really a choice. Ra's could have had anyone do it. He could have even done it himself, but that was unlikely.

Damian left Mary to go check again on the victim's daughter, Mariah Winters. The crying girl from earlier. It was nice seeing Damian be kind to her.

"You're not coming with us." The statement made Mary turn around. She found Kevin standing behind her.

"Kev, listen…" Mary trailed off trying to think of some excuse.

"You know." He started. "I just don't get you. You could easily be the best dancer ever. Yet, something always comes up, stopping you from achieving anything greater than just being talented."

"Kevin, I'm sorry." Mary apologized. She looked down at the ground.

"I really don't understand you, Mary," He said staring at her intently. "How did you do that?" He asked her. Mary tilted her head confused.

"How did I do what?"

"Look at Mrs. Winter's corpse and be completely calm! Handle this situation like it was completely normal, talk down to me like I was a stranger!" Mary hadn't realized she did that. Kevin looked extremely upset, his shoulder tensed up he was shaking, he was scared. "Look so cold as if someone hadn't just died. Like-Like-Like,"

"I've seen that before?" Mary finished for him, her eyebrows raised.

"Yes." He was breathing hard. "Just who are you, Mary Grayson?" He asked.

Mary snorted, "Kevin, don't be stupid. You know who I am."

Kevin backed away from her, "I don't think I do, and I don't think you do either." A silence followed Kevin's words. Mary didn't say anything at first, not sure what to say.

"You're wrong, Kevin." She shook her head. "I know who I am, and I am sorry that you can't." Mary looked down at her watch checking the time. "I have to go, Kevin."

"You have other responsibilities, I know. I had a feeling that you wouldn't be getting on the plane with us to Hawaii. I don't think the others will be too happy." He said. He let out a sigh. It struck a cord in Mary that he didn't seem at all surprised that she was about the cancel on the competition. In fact, he seemed a little nonchalant about it. Like he had seen it coming. The mood seemed to lift slightly, still the heavy overtone stayed.

"Tell the others I'll be there." The words flew out of Mary's mouth before she could stop them. Kevin's head flew up he gave her a questioning look.

"But what about-"

"I'll be done with it before tomorrow," Mary promised. She wasn't so sure that this was true."I'll be on my dad's plane heading to Hawaii by noon tomorrow at the latest." Kevin frowned.

"So you won't be getting on the plane with us."

Mary carefully thinking about her words. "No, but I will make it to the competition this time. Give me a chance to work out things here, and then I'll head to you guys."

"If you say so, Mary." He gave her skeptical look. Before looking in the cafeteria at the other children. You could easily tell who the ones who had seen the teacher's body were. They sat quiet, unsure of how to process what their eyes had seen. Even Kevin was serious, and that usual grin was not on his face.

"Where are you going with this, Kevin?" Mary asked.

"Nothing, just tell Damian I said Happy Birthday, it is today isn't it? Must be a coincidence." He said. "I'll see you soon, Mary. Hopefully." Then he walked away. Mary frowned. He was starting to get suspicious of her. Only natural with how close him and Mary are. If he knew…Mary knew he wouldn't tell anyone. No that wasn't the issue. The issue was if he knew, he'd be a liability. He would want to help her. Mary's watch beeped on her wrist. Her fifteen minutes were up. She has to worry about Kevin later, right now. She had to worry about something far more important.

Mary frowned. He was starting to get suspicious of her. Only natural with how close him and Mary are. If he knew…Mary knew he wouldn't tell anyone. No that wasn't the issue. The issue was if he knew, he'd be a liability. He would want to help her. Mary's watch beeped on her wrist. Her fifteen minutes were up. She has to worry about Kevin later, right now. She had to worry about something far more important.

* * *

In less than 3 hours, the whole family was in the Batcave.

"Oh god, Damian, Mary. Are you two all right?" Barbara wheeled towards them with a worried expression.

Damian shrugged, "We're fine." He replied gruffly.

"A little upset, but that's what happens when you find your art teacher's corpse strung up for all to see," Mary said cynically. Mary's eyes flicked to Damian's. He seemed a little shaken, slightly more than she thought he would be, but Mary didn't think anything of it. He had mentioned before that Mrs. Winters was one of his favorite teachers.

"I'm sorry to hear about that. We'll have to send her family our condolences." Barbara.

"And pay for the funeral." Dick cut in walking up. "She died because of us. Because Ra's was targeting one of us. He shouldn't have brought in someone who was not involved. He'll pay for this." Dick scowled. Something Mary rarely saw her father do. Even when fighting her tried to keep up his witty appearance. Now that Mary thought about it, Her father scowled a lot like his adoptive brothers. No doubt a trait picked up from their father.

"We'll get to that later," Bruce said. "Ra's is in Gotham and he needs to be taken care of." Things were getting serious. There was something stronger in Bruce's tone. Something Mary had never heard from him. Resolve? Strength? She couldn't place the emotion she was hearing, but it made her frighten for any who stood against The Batman.

"You have a plan," Jason said. He was currently cleaning one of his guns. A habit that told Mary that he was far more nervous than he was letting on.

"Of course, but none of you are going to like it," Bruce answered.

"Oh god. Now I'm terrified. " Stephanie groaned. "What aren't we going to like, Bruce." Everyone in the room hung on Bruce's words.

"I know exactly when Ra's is going strike. And we're going to let it happen." He said turning back to the computer, pulling something up on the screen.

"What!" "No!" "Bruce we can't!" "Father, think about this. Please." Jason, Tim, Dick, and Damian said at the same time.

"But he'll kill again, Bruce. We can't just let that happen." Mary pleaded.

"I realize. However, There is no way to stop him at the moment. We have no clues as to where Ra's and The League are hiding out in Gotham. We don't even know where they will strike."

"There must be clues at the school still," Stephanie said.

"Yes, and that is exactly when Ra's will strike. Knowing when is only half the battle, we need to know where first."

"Ra's al Ghul is never random. Why kill the teacher?" Tim pondered. "Someone pull up the victim's bio. What do we know about Mrs. Claudia Winters?" Tim asked.

"She's been teaching at Gotham academy for the past 5 years. She's one of the few teachers that actually live on campus. Her late husband died in Iraq, he was a soldier, and her daughter is in my grade. We share a few classes. " Damian rattled off as he pulled up her information on the computer.

Mary raised an eyebrow at Damian. "You know a lot about her," She commented. "She was your favortie teacher, right?"

Surprisingly Damian nodded, "Yes, yes she was."

"Ok, is it just me or Ra's picking off Damian's favorite teacher seem a little too petty?" Jason asked. Next to him Barbara nodded.

"I have to agree, That's not a strong enough connection to kill her off. It has to be something else."

Dick was looking at the file reading it over Bruce's shoulders, "Maybe we're looking at this the wrong way. Damian, pull up the daughter's Information. I want all off from Facebook to Instagram" Next to Dick, Damian casually walked up.

"You think this has more to do with the daughter?" Bruce asked.

"I want to know why Claudia Winters was targeted,She isn't that close to Damian, or at least not that we know of. Look her on her Facebook" Dick said pointing to the computer, "Says she's in a relationship." He shot Damian a knowing look. "This is your secret girlfriend isn't it ?"

There was a shocked silence until Jason started laughing.

Mary stared at Damian in shock as his jaw clenched. "I don't know what you're talking about?" He ground out.

Dick rolled his eyes, "Please, Damian. You may fool Mary and Bruce, but it's going to take a million years to ever get one up on me. Who do you think was the best about hiding relationships? Certainly not Tim, and Jason hardly ever bothers. I know the signs because I invented them. Just fess up so we can move on."

Jason still hadn't stopped laughing when Damian let out a sigh and begrudgingly answered that he and the victim's daughter, Mariah Winters, were, in fact, seeing each other.

"How did I miss this? How did I miss this?" Mary whispered to herself horrified. She always prided herself on knowing not only Damian very well. She was his partner. SHe should have seen this.

Tim patted her shoulder and whispered, "You'll get to that level one day. Dick's just always been good with Damian."

"Now, we have the motive and the next victim. Tada!" Dick said presenting the information on Mariah Winters.

"I still don't think I like the idea of using an innocent as bait," Mary said. "Mariah Winters had been through enough."

"I'm guessing Damian probably has the same sentiment. Then again he didn't fess up in the beginning. You must have known she would've been a target." Jason asked.

Dick stood in front of Damian blocking Jason of his view of the boy, "Lay off him Jason. Shut your mouth and let's focus on what really matters here." Dick told him. Jason, not really feeling like creating a confrontation, backed off.

"Plan still the same, B? " Jason asked Bruce.

"Yes, as much as I would rather not use a civilian, especially one so young, it needs to be done to stop Ra's." Bruce said. Bruce hadn't even blinked at the revealed knowledge of his 14-year-old son dating. "We'll keep the girl safe. I promise."

"This doesn't really change anything. We still have the issue of protecting the innocent while protecting Damian." Stephanie said.

"I don't need protection, Brown." Damian growled at her.

"Watch yourself," Tim warned. "She's right. If we bring you, Ra's could easily attack us in the streets and carry you away in the chaos."

"But if we leave him here with no protection Ra's could easily raid the manor and take him by force." Barbara finished. "It's a Catch-22. To save the girl, we lose Damian, and to protect Damian, we lose the girl."

Damian huffed, "We could split our forces." He said with an eye roll. Mary guessed, that Damian figured that since there was no arguing he might as well help.

"Ra's could take advantage of that, and still attack overwhelming us." Tim pointed out.

"We're at a crossroads then. " Bruce said. "Ra's knows we'll pick Mariah Winters' safety as a top priority leaving Damian vulnerable, or that Damian wouldn't allow his safety to take precedence over her's."

Mary bit her lip as she studied her family in the Batcave. Letting Damian get captured was not an option, but neither was letting a schoolmate die. The room was silent with everyone brainstorming. No one had a way to completely keep both Mariah Winters and Damian safe and away from Ra's al Ghul's hands. There was no winning choice here, but Mary felt that there had to be another way.

Her eyes drifted around the Batcave letting everything around her inspire her with something that could help this helpless situation. Her eyes caught the memorial, Jason's memorial with his original Robin suit sitting there illuminated. In the glass, Mary could see her reflection. It almost made it look like she was wearing the robin costume.

Wordlessly Mary bent down and pulled a knife out of her boot. It seemed only Barbara noticed the odd action a she spoke up, drawing everyone's attention to the girl.

"Mary, what are you do-" But before anyone could stop her, Mary pulled all her hair together and in one swift motion cut a majority of it off. Hair pooled around her feet. It tickled the way it moved against the top of her ears. It almost made Mary sick, she loved her hair. She loved Damian more.

"Why did you-?" Dick asked staring at her wide-eyed.

"It seems to me that Damian needs to be in two places at once. So, we're going to make that happen."

Bruce nodded at Mary, understanding her plan. "This could actually work."

Damian turned to his father, "No it won't. My Grandfather would automatically know that it's not me."

"Good thing we're probably not going to be facing your grandfather," Bruce told his son. "Most likely, the assassins he sends are just going to pay attention to the fact that you are Robin, instead of checking to see if it's actually you in the costume."

"Use someone else. No one is going to believe that this small girl is really me."

"I don't know Damian, we fix up the hair. We could easily fool someone who doesn't really know you." Stephanie said.

"Personally, Mary's got that pretty face like her father. No one's going to believe that she's a boy. She's not even shaped like one." Jason pointed out. "besides Mary is too short."

"Only by like 2 inches," Mary argued. "Good thing I'm tall for my age or else we would have an issue. Right now this is the safest plan we've got. Before we would have had to leave at least half of us at the safe house with Damian, now we can practically have all of us fighting against the assassin's with me as the target. They wouldn't even think to check if I was a decoy."

Dick sighed, and brushed his hair back, "I don't like it, but it's going to work. With all eyes on Mary as Robin, we have an easer time getting Damian to safety and protecting him. This will cover all of our bases. It makes it so we can have more people out infield in case something goes wrong."

"We can protect that Winters girl, and Damian at the same time. Mary, you're brilliant." Barbara praised.

Mary shrugged, "I play decoy all the time, this is no different."

"Then it's decided," Bruce announced. "Mary go upstairs and have Alfred cut your hair in the Damian's style. Everyone else suit up. Tonight we put an end to this."

* * *

Mary looked at herself in the mirror. She really looked like Robin, but not really Damian. The only feature missing was the strong chin Damian had. Other than that any person who didn't really know Damian would have never guessed that it wasn't him in the Robin costume.

Mary pulled the sleeve down a little to keep in from bunching up. Mary never realized how much bigger Damian was from her. If it weren't for the utility belt one would be able to see how the tunic didn't quite fit right. Under the gloves fabric of the kevlar top pooled just out of sight so that no one could be suspicious. The boots also didn't fit, but it was stuffed enough to make sure Mary could do whatever necessary, and not trip all over herself. Mary let out a deep breath. This was just another role she had to play, another part. This should be easy, so why didn't Mary feel any better?

The answer could probably be her partner silently glaring at her. He was currently the only one in civvies, more than likely adding to his frustration.

"You're mad at me," She told him. "I'm doing this for you."

Damian scoffed, "Yeah, well I really wish you wouldn't. I should be the one going out there and facing my grandfather."

"Yes, Damian, give him exactly what he wants. If you could have just done that, we could have just dropped you off in front of wherever it is he is hiding, and pick you up later. Then maybe Ra's will tell us stories about the olden days like a typical grandfather. " Mary told him sarcastically. "You're scared for a reason, don't let that fear blind you. Move past it and think rationally."

"I am thinking rationally! You are all the ones making me hide like a coward! I am not a coward!" He snapped at her raising his voice.

Mary held up her hands in defeat, "No one said you were. We just want to make sure this has the best outcome. We need to avoid confrontation with Ra's. It's essential to keeping you safe."

Damian snorted, "you don't know my grandfather then. One way or another, he's going to get to me, and I'm going to have to face him whether you like it or not. The Shadows never really go away, they never fade. You and father can't protect me forever." Damian turned away from his partner and stalked off, heading up the stairs, and out of the Batcave.

"He's fine." Mary turned to find her father walking towards her. Nightwing had just gotten out of a conversation with Black Bat and Red Hod. "I'll talk to him. You gotta understand, Damian very independent. This whole plan from the beginning offended him. He's still a kid, Starshine, though sometimes he doesn't act like it. The league coming back for him has always been one of his greatest fears" Mary nodded understandingly. She understood really she did. However, she just wished Damian could see their side of things.

"Like I said I'll talk to him before we head out. Make sure Babs calls Helena for me. If she misses out on this she might just kill us. " Nightwing told his disguised daughter before heading up the stairs to talk to his wayward brother.

_Everything is going to go according to plan. Everything is going to go according to plan. Everything is going to go according to plan._

The more times she repeated that in her head, the better chance it would come true. Right now she had to believe that nothing was going to wrong. That they were going to save everyone. Today, no one else dies. Mary promised to herself, and she planned to keep it.

* * *

They split up into 2 teams. One team was watching the dorm room of Mariah Winters on campus. She had haled herself in her room, Her Mother had only been dead for hours now. The disguised Robin could sympathize with her, truly. Losing a mother isn't easy. However, Mary was grateful that she was not placed on the team to watch the girl. On that team, was Black Bat, Red Robin, and Huntress(Who had joined the excursion last minute), Red Hood backed them up from a sniper's position in the building across from there's.

Mary as Robin needed to be shown out in the open. For the plan to work the league needed to think that Damian was at Batman's side. In actuality, Damian would be currently being smuggled out of the city to a safe by Black Canary and her new protege, The Jade Canary. Oracle had called them, any extra help protecting Damian was much needed.

Mary got a cold shiver in the back of her neck and tilted her head slightly so to see a little behind her. Just like Batman had called it. They were being watched. She couldn't see where they were. From the way her father and Batgirl had tensed up ever so slightly, Mary knew they could feel that someone was watching them as well.

As they got to the crime scene, Mary held back a sigh of relief. They had taken down the body of. In all honesty, Mary wondered how badly the kids at school would take the death of their teacher. Death? If only it were that simple. was mutilated and placed on display like she was someones art project. The thought made Mary sick.

"Batman, you're here." It was Commissioner Jim Gordon who greeted them. Mary pitied the man he was one year from retirement, and it seemed that fate wouldn't let the man get a moments rest.

"Sorry, we're late, Jim. We know who's behind this." Batman told the commissioner.

"Already? You haven't even investigated the crime scene" Commissioner Gordon raised an eyebrow. "I see you've brought the calvary. So I'm guessing it's nothing good?"

"Nope." It was Nightwing who answered. "You got unluckily today Commissioner."

"It's the League of Shadows. It seems they've sent an assassin, to kill a teacher at this school." Batman answered.

Gordon whistled. "Sounds complicated. Just drop off whoever you catch to the precinct. "

"No guarantees." Batgirl sang. "Have you ever tried to catch ninja? It's not fun." Nightwing elbowed her in the arm.

"Well take care of this, Jim," Batman promised, ignoring Batgirl's statement.

Mary thanked X'hal that Damian was such "Brooding-in-silence" kind of guy. She couldn't match her voice to his no matter how hard she tried and to get the device to do it would have taken up too much time.

Commissioner Gordon's eyes studied them, surveying the situation. His eyes stopped on Mary. She gave a very convincing "Tt." And turned her head away from his gaze. This seemed to satisfy the commissioner as he turned back to Batman.

"Alright. I don't need assassins running around this city. Call if you need anything." Gordon offered.

Batman nodded. They wouldn't call him.

Batman turned to his team, and they went inside to crime scene to "Investigate". Really, they were just buying time. The league was too clever to leave anything behind. When Mary stopped to look at the blood stained wall she found Gordon studying her again. This time, she knew the jig was up she turned to him, and smirked in a way that Damian never would. Gordon blinked twice before turning away to direct his police force as if he hadn't seen anything.

Just when things were starting to get boring Mary's comm link came to life.

_"We've got assassins!"_ It was Red Hood warning to the B-team was just milliseconds early. In her comm, Mary could hear them fighting.

"What's the situation, Hood?" Batman asked.

_"We've got three in total. A little overkill for a young girl if you ask me?"_ He told them.

Mary turned to Batman with wide eyes, "Three? That means-"

"AMBUSH!" It was Batgirl's cry that alerted them to the assassins falling down from the roof of the building. They must have been waiting for them.

Mary was ready to get into fighting position when a hand grabbed hers and dragged her away from the fight.

"If you fight they'll know." Batman reminded her. Mary nodded. She didn't fight anything like Damian, and she wasn't going to try and mimic without practice first. "Batgirl, get Robin out of here. Don't let them get to him." he said extra loud. This seemed to catch all of the assassin's attention, as they know tried to run after Batgirl and Robin only to be stopped by Batman and Nightwing.

Finally, when they were far away enough Mary stopped running.

"What are you doing?" Batgirl asked her confused. "Robin we have to go.

"Wait." Mary held up a finger to her lip shushing Batgirl.

"Robin?" Batgirl asked. The was a quiver in her voice. Mary could hear something, just barely. "We need to keep moving-"

"Move!" Mary screamed tackling Batgirl to the ground. They landed on dirt in a harsh tumble, and in the dirt where they were just standing was a single sai. "Oh no." Mary flipped up in time dragging Batgirl with her just in time to dodge a kick from an assassin. She wore green and on her face a mask of a grinning cat. Mary read the file, she knew who this was. The infamous Cheshire.

"End of the line. The master asks for your presence, boy." Mary breathed a sigh of relief, her cover hadn't been blown. Almost too fast for Mary to see was on her. Grabbing Damian's sword she was barely able to parry the blow.

"Hmm," Cheshire mused. "I'm not impressed. I heard you were a prodigy, an al Ghul. So far all I see is a scared child!" Chesire kicked the disguised Robin in the stomach sending her flying back. This time, Batgirl stepped in sending a barrage of batarangs flying towards the assassin. Of course, Chesire blocked and dogged everyone.

"We need Back up!" Batgirl screamed in her comm as she threw herself towards Cheshire, who dogged all her punches and kicks with ease.

_"We're a little busy!"_ Nightwing admitted in his comm. Mary could hear the struggle in his voice as she got up and sent a flying kick towards Cheshire who only grabbed her, and threw her into Batgirl, sending both crashing back to the ground.

"It's Jade Nguyen, Cheshire! We need back up NOW!" Mary screamed. Mary growled a she didn't receive an answer. Mary held Damian's sword tight in her hands and attacked Chesire. She swung the sword but Cheshire was leagues ahead of Mary in combat. She blocked every blow and laughed condescendingly at her.

"You're not him, are you?" She said eyeing Mary. "Whoever you are, a sword is definitely not your weapon. You are no al Ghul."

Mary threw the sword down, "You're right. I'm not. Pulling one of her knives from Damian's utility belt, she thanked X'hal that she had enough foreknowledge to place it there. Then attacked Chesire with new vigor.

Mary blocked her Sai all she could, but she Cheshire was much better at close quarters combat and found an opening. Mary didn't see it until it was too late, Cheshire's Sai aiming straight for stomach angled upward, the blow would surely kill her. Mary brought a knife down in hopes of blocking it, but that was just wishful thinking at this point. However before Cheshire could land the blow three gunshots rang out. Mary felt one of the bullets skid past her cheek leaving a scratch. Cheshire wasn't so lucky.

"God, Hood, you took your sweet time," Batgirl said letting out a sigh of relief. She was holding her wrist gently. She must have hurt it when Cheshire sent Mary flying into her.

"Yeah, when I heard Jade was here, I decided to pay a little visit. Sorry, I took so long, but we rarely have guest like this one." Red Hood walked up to assassin who was struggling on the ground. Hood had shot her in both knees and the shoulder.

Hood kicked Cheshire back down to the ground right in the shoulder he shot. "Hello, Jade. Nice to see you again."

Cheshire spit out blood, "Hood, should have known you were here. I wish I could extend the same pleasure, but right now I'm in too much pain from the bullets you put in me."

Red Hood waved hand which still held his gun, "Soon you're going to bleed out unless you give us information on Ra's is."

"I don't fear death, Hood. Let me bleed out here on the concrete. I would love to see how you would explain that to Roy and Lian later on."

"Roy would get over it. Lian, too, but you are right. Letting you die here isn't really that much of a punishment. In fact, it would just be justice, but you, Jade, I want you to suffer. So you are going to live."

"And what you're going to torture me?" She laughed at the idea.

"No, I was going to hand you over to the Black Canary." Mary can swear that she never seen the blood leave someone's face so fast. "I hear she's been looking for you since you put Roy in the hospital a couple weeks ago." Jason holstered his gun, "I gotta admit I'm still a little pissed about that one, too. Taking a Red Eye all the way to Star at 4 in the morning because one of your best friend was going into surgery isn't the best way to start the day. So, I'm giving you a choice, Jade. You can either come with us, we'll give you medical attention, make sure both of your knees are still intact, or we can hand you over to Dinah. Either way, we still get our info, but trust me there is a reason Roy never wanted to get on her bad side."

"It's been weeks, she still can't be that mad," Cheshire said. "Besides Roy survived.

"Want to find out?" He asked. "Come one, Jade, You're a knife for hire. You don't usually work for the league. Why had the change? You can't possibly be loyal."

"The league comes with some protection perks."

"Yeah, whose going to protect you when you fail at a mission?" Hood asked.

"I don't fail."

"You just did. So again what's it going to be?" Hood asked again.

Cheshire chewed her lip, "Fine. I'll tell you want you need to know. Just when I started to like my boss." She commented with an eye roll.

"Well, he's not going to like you much now," Hood told her. He knelt down and not-so-gently handcuffed Cheshire. Then also tied her legs together. Mary guessed she must be one of those.

Surprisingly Hood took his eyes off the assassin and they caught Mary's. "We need to work on your hand to hand," He said, "You've been slacking." Was all he told her before he went back to glaring at Cheshire. Mary sighed. The one downside of Jason coming to save her was the lecture she was going to get later on for losing that fight.

"This is Batgirl. We're clear." Mary could hear Batgirl talking in her comm behind her.

"We've saved Mariah Winters. We couldn't capture any of the assassins, though." Huntress spoke.

"Don't worry." Mary didn't need to look at Jason to know he was grinning. "I've caught us a pretty big fish."

* * *

"We're wasting our time," Hood said bored. The were all currently in the GCPD, and unlike her promise Cheshire wasn't talking. Batman and Huntress were taking care of the interrogation. Hood, Red Robin, and Nightwing were monitoring their progress with the interrogation. Batgirl went to get coffee, and Honestly Starling had no clue where Black Bat had been for the past hour.

"She'll start eventually. Bats hasn't even warmed up yet." Nightwing pointed out.

"Yeah, but Ra's might run. He knows we're coming after him now." Red Robin said. "That would be the best move for him."

"Yeah, sorry Red, but he wouldn't make it that easy for us." Hood said pulling out a knife and started to throw it back and forth between his hands.

Starling frowned, this all seemed a little simple. Well, simple for Ra's. The moment Mary had the chance she changed back into her Starling uniform, being Robin that wasn't her. Now, She read his file intensely, she knew he would eventually become a problem though he had been quiet for a few years. Like Damian had told her earlier, the Shadows never really go away, they never fade.

So why was Cheshire telling Batman the same thing now?

Starling watched carefully studying Cheshire through the double-sided mirror, and she almost missed it. Cheshire's eyes cutting towards the security camera in the left corner of the room. Someone was watching.

"Crap!" Starling ran out the room cape flying behind her barging into the room. "Cut the camera feed, we're being watched. Someone hacked into the GCPD."

"Impossible." Starling could hear Oracle say in her ears, "I've practically made those computers from the ground up, only we can hack into them now."

"Starling." Batman looked at her up and down. " Are you sure?" He asked.

Starling nodded, "As I can be. She looked towards the camera. Her body language is a little too confident. Something is going on here. I think we've been played."

Huntress slapped Cheshire hard in the face, "Tell us what you know. Now. The police won't dare barge in here, and I'm not Batman. I kill killers like you every day. In fact, you're on my list, Cheshire. The blood on your hands alone is worth too many innocent souls, and someone close to me is at risk. I suggest you get talking."

Cheshire frowned, "You really thought you were a step ahead, didn't you? Sorry batman, but I don't think you know the boy as well as you think you do."

Starling could feel the whole world around her stop. She could barely hear Batman's panicked voice asking for Black Canary and Damian's position. His soft curse answered any worries she may have had.

"Oracle, get eyes on the safe house," Batman ordered.

"It's too late," Starling said. "He's gone," Oracle confirmed what everyone already knew. Mary was in a stupor she didn't know what to do.

"He's already gone. He's tracker is offline, and he's avoiding street cams." Oracle informed.

"Of course, he is." Batman cursed under his breath.

Starling pulled her knife out and pressed it to Cheshire's throat. Catching everyone in the room off guard. "WHERE IS RA'S HIDING? WHERE IS ROBIN HEADING? IF SOMETHING HAPPENS TO HIM I SWEAR TO X'HAL I'LL-"

"Starling!" She froze at the stern tone of her father's voice. She turned back to see everyone now in the room. Nightwing's gaze firm, and filled with something Starling was sure she had only seen once. When she had let Ivy go free. Disappointment.

"That is not how we interrogate. Disarm, and back away from Cheshire." Nightwing ordered.

"But-She-_Robin!_"

"Now, Starling!" Starling placed her knife back in her belt and slunk back into the corner of the room next the Jason, who patted her shoulder understandingly.

"Now, Batman have them process Cheshire. She can't help us anymore, and we don't need her help." Nightwing spoke steadily walking up Cheshire. "Arkham's probably the only place that Ra's can't have her killed." The assassin rolled her eyes. Starling had a feeling she'd be out in three days at the least. The moment she was transferred to Blackgate, Cheshire would be in the wind.

It was Red Robin who cleared his throat ending the confused silence accompanied by stares, "Nightwing, I think there's something you need to tell us."

Nightwing didn't say anything at first only pulling a small device, "If any of you really thought Damian was going to stay put and actually listen for once, I commend you on your naivety."

The silent stupor of the room was more that enough to convey the emotions felt by everyone.

"We really fucked up with this one." Red Hood sighed vocalizing everyone's thoughts and placed a palm on his helmet. "Why didn't you stop him?" Hood said seriously.

"Because he would lead us right to Ra's," Nightwing said. "Ra's has been a cloud over our heads for too long now and this is the chance to stop him. He's vulnerable, now is the time to strike."

"So you used Damian as bait!" Starling shouted. "You don't do that to family."

Nightwing shrugged. "Damian will never be truly safe as long as Ra's is out there. I've been expecting Ra's to make his move for a while now. It'll be years before he tries anything again. This is our chance to finally finish Ra's, our last chance to make sure our family is safe."

"At the cost of Damian?" Starling asked outraged, "...I don't think so." Starling stormed out of the interrogation room. Not a glance spared back at her father.

"Starling!" Red Hood moved to go after her, but it was Red Robin that stopped him. Red Robin shook his head and went after the young girl.

Nightwing stared out the door where his daughter just ran out.

"She'll understand when she's older," Nightwing said to no one in particular.

"I'm sure." Red Hood spoke dryly.

"Now," Red Hood pulled out a cigarette. "Before I kick your ass, I'm going to assume you have a plan that doesn't send our baby brother into the hands of death."

Nightwing sighed, "Of course, I do."

"Then start talking."

* * *

"Starling!"

"Star! Please!"

"Slow Down!"

She ignored every last one of Red Robin's cries. This wasn't right. How could her father do something like this? Send one of his so-called brothers off into mortal danger like this? This wasn't the man she knew. This wasn't the father she knew. Where was the father who smiled at her during fights? Where was the father that had terrible one-liners? Where was the father who was horrible at puns? The father that kissed her to sleep every night? The Father who watches her dances recitals. The father who cheers her on and teaches her new things? The Father that made her want to stay on Earth just to get to know him. That cold creature in the room she just ran out of that was not her father.

Starling didn't stop running until her face was met with the harsh April winds. She was on the roof of the GCPD. Only then did she realize that her hand was reaching for her grapple. Where was she going? Starling didn't know. She just knew she wanted to get away, but she couldn't leave. No, she couldn't just leave. How she wished she could fly along the April winds. She forgotten how much flying had cleared her head.

"Mary!" Starling turned to find an out of breath Red Robin behind her.

"You followed me?" Starling frowned.

"What? Not expecting someone too. Jason was just as pissed. I left him down there so Nightwing could explain himself, while I take care of you."

"You didn't have to." Starling ground out, "I'm fine. We better go back down and listen to the plan." Starling moved to go back down the stairs to the rest of the family only to be held back by Red Robin.

"I don't think so. If I know Nightwing, The plan is already in motion. If he needs us he'll come and get us. Right now, we need to talk about you, Mary."

Starling crossed her arms, "What's there to talk about? I'm fine, he's fine, and apparently Damian's going to be fine, too. There's nothing to talk about." Starling turned her head toward the city street. "Nightwing has saved the day, so what's the issue?" Red Robin sighed and took a hold of Starling's hand leading her to the ledge, and sitting her down.

"That's the first time you've seen him like that, isn't it?" Red Robin asked.

"Like what? That cold, that logical, that unfeeling. Then yes, it was my first time seeing him that way. How someone so warm, and loving could"

"-Go so cold and logically so quickly." Red Robin finished for her. "It was almost like he was Batman." Starling almost flinched at his words, "That's just a little side effect from being raised by the Brooding Batman. We all do it, cut ourselves off from our emotions in order to get the job done. Though your father's switch is perhaps the most dramatic out of all. It's a bit shocking to those who aren't used to it. The first few time he did it to me caught me way off guard, as well."

"I don't understand. He used to be compassionate, so loving…" Starling rubbed her arms as the wind moved harshly around their bodies.

"And he still is, but in our business hard choices must be made. It's better for everyone just to not get too emotional." Red Robin pulled his knees to his chest. "I understand what your feeling. I really do."

Starling turned to him, "What do you mean?"

"Dick and I used to be extremely close. We're still close just not as close. And well," Red Robin sighed. "Let me start from the beginning."

"When I first became Robin, you father took me under his wing. He helped train me when Bruce was busy or unwilling, and really helped me out in my early days. You see, Starling, I probably had the roughest start as out of all the Robins excluding Damian mostly because he actually killed people. But My start was rough for an entirely different reason. I had to follow-up Jason. The Robin who was so dedicated to his job he dead while doing it."

Starling stared at Tim shocked. She had never heard him talk about becoming Robin this way. The way everyone spoke about it Tim was the perfect Robin.

"Batman was still grieving Jason and was volatile, angry. Angry at himself for letting Jason die. Angry at Gotham for being the cause of Jason's death, and Angry at me for replacing him. The Early days were rough, but no one wanted another dead Robin. So I got a lot of help. People helped train me, and prepare me for the job, and the one that was there for me most was your father. We became like brothers almost instantly. We were very close. We were close for years and years."

"So what happened?" Starling asked. "Why aren't you close anymore?"

"Well, I was an only child before getting adopted. I guess I enjoyed being the youngest brother a little more than I previously thought. When I wasn't the youngest anymore…."

"Damian?" Starling asked. "Damian did that."

"No, it wasn't just him coming into the family. It was a lot of things, we thought Bruce was dead for a while, and we were all a little emotional at the time. Damian hadn't known his father long before he seemingly died, and Dick has a way of knowing who needs him the most, and that wasn't me. Next thing I know, Dick is Batman and Damian is Robin. So where did that leave me? I never thought your dad could leave someone out in the cold like that, let alone me. I mean we were brothers, but here I was out in the cold and in my place a new, younger Robin, one who was a much more natural fighter than me. At that time, I think I really understood why Jason hated me. Being replaced like that it sucks, a lot. It hurts far more than I ever thought it would."

"I don't understand. How does this relate to me right now?" Starling asked.

"The point of this story was to tell you that doing what we do a lot of hard decisions must be made. At the time, I didn't understand why exactly Dick made Damian Robin, but I forgot that though Damian didn't know Bruce long he lost a father, too. Dick made Damian Robin as a way of redirecting those feelings into a more positive outlet. Damian was a little wild back then, and Dick needed to keep an eye on him."

Starling chuckled a little, "You know that was one of the first things my father taught me when I became Starling. Hard choices must be made. At the time, I thought it meant like sending a person to jail for something that was out of their control or doing it to save someone else, but those aren't really the hardest choices we have to make."

"Your father made a hard call when he did this. You don't really think he enjoys putting Damian in danger?" Starling shook her head no. "But he saw a chance to really make a difference and he followed through with it. Do you understand?"

"Yeah, I think I do. Still, why not tell us?" Starling asked. "We could have helped."

"He probably thought we wouldn't approve of the plan, or that we might try to stop Damian, or that we would tip him off. Either way, what's done is done. Do you think you can forgive him?"

Starling huffed out a breath, "Yeah, I'm still mad, but I get it."

"That's great now-"

"Red Robin, Starling, we're heading out to retrieve Damian. Meet at the cars in 2 minutes." Nightwing's voice came clear through the comm. "We'll fill you two in on the way."

"We'll be there." Red Robin responded, "Ok, Starling, ready to go?" She nodded and followed him down to the cars, where her father stood waiting. He didn't look disappointed at her like he had earlier, or anxious to see her like he had when they first meet. Instead, Starling found that she couldn't read his emotions. He was a stone wall. She'd seen this look before, but it was never ever directed at herself.

"Listen, Dad-"

"I won't apologize." Nightwing cut her off. "I had my reasons and at the end of the day, those reasons mattered a little more than your feelings. I know that sounds harsh, Starling, but when lives are at stake and I have to do what I have to do."

Starling nodded, "I understand." Starling told him. "I really do, and I'm not going to ask for an apology, and I'm not going to give one either. My outburst early was wrong, and inappropriate, but-"

"Considering the circumstances understandable." He finished for her. "Good, then we understand each other."

Starling nodded, "I'm still angry." She admitted.

"I know." Nightwing sent her a smile, the same one that made her take his hand and stay on Earth. "Come on, let's save Damian." Starling didn't need to be told twice, with a final look towards Red Robin, who gave her a thumbs up, Starling got into the car.

"So what is your Masterful plan, Nightwing?" Starling asked as he turned on the road and started speeding.

"I tagged Damian when I had a private talk with him earlier. I knew he would pull something like this, so I took the opportunity to make sure I knew where he was at all times tonight. I also made sure to put Jade Canary, Black Canary's daughter on guard duty with her. Now, getting past Black canary would be hard, I thought if it were just her and Helena, Damian might not try to sneak out, or he would do something that would take the tracker off of him. So I put in someone younger than him to take advantage of to secure my tracker staying on him, and him sneaking away."

Mary thought back, Her father did talk to Damian alone. Perfect time to place a tracker on him.

"Who's to say he didn't change his clothes just in case. I mean, wouldn't be the first time someone tried tagging him." Starling pointed out.

Nightwing grinned. "I thought about that, so I put three on him. One in his jacket, One in his shoe, and the other in his coffee" Starling's now ear length hair hit her in the face as she whipped around to face her father.

"You put one in his coffee?" She asked shocked.

"Yes, if Damian didn't find the first tracker( which he did by the way), Ra's would. He knows how we work so the fact that he wouldn't find a tracker on Damian would tip him off."

"Redirection," Starling said

"Exactly. Neither will suspect I place a tracker in Damian's stomach, not only is it good for 12 hours, it checks vitals. So I can check on Damian's wellbeing."

"So, you really didn't put Damian in danger with no way of getting him out." Starling realized.

"Of course not. He's my kid brother, but being his older brother, I realized that he needed to face Ra's, on his own. However that would get him killed, so I'm helping him out a little."

"So what's the plan from here?"

"One sec." He told her before speaking to the comm. "Cass, You in place? Has Damian stopped moving?"

"I don't have eyes on him anymore. He's in old Gotham at that rundown hotel. I'm sure they're on the top floor. I can't get a visual even with all the windows.

"The Herveaux. Thanks, Cassandra, send to coordinates to the others." Nightwing then turned back to Starling "I sent Black Bat to follow Damian just in case something went wrong. She's been tailing him since he's escaped the safe house."

"When? How? I have a lot to learn, don't I?" Starling sighed.

"Don't worry you're a quick study like your dad." Nightwing smiled at her.

"So what we're going in, guns blazing?"

"Yeah, no. We don't want to end up ninja food. I have a better plan. I need you to call in a little favor with your friend. I need someone to block all the exits at the Herveaux."

Starling blinked a few times trying to figure out who her father meant. "Friend? You mean Poison Ivy? I mean she doesn't owe me a favor after she saved my life. I could ask her, but we'll owe her."

"Good. I had a feeling that you stayed in some sort of contact with her. " Nightwing nodded.

"More than that, I know where she is," Starling admitted. "We meet twice a month to talk about gardening."

"Good. Then I can trust you'll be safe there with her." Nightwing said slowly.

"What?!" Starling screamed. "After everything you're leaving me behind!"

Nightwing sighed," For this plan to work Ivy has to be in precision exactly with us. It's not that I don't think you can handle going up against the Shadows, it's that I need you somewhere else. You want to save Damian, right? Then do as your told."

"Fine, but the moment Damian's safe I'm coming over there, no if's, and's, or but's." Starling promised.

* * *

"I can't believe I'm working with the heroes….again." Ivy's hideout was actually a really nice townhouse. Two stories and a basement in the middle of the suburbs. No one suspected that the neighbor with the beautiful garden was actually the supervillain, Poison Ivy.

"We really owe you one for this, Ivy. I mean it. You're helping us save one of our own. Batman will definitely owe you one." Starling said staring at her laptop. She hated being put on tech duty, but really what good could she do against those highly trained assassins. She was good, but not that good. Nightwing's plan made sense, with Oracle busy checking out the hotel. Starling was looking up the building record, floor layouts any old history that could give them an edge against Ra's. However, that old immortal was a very smart man. The hotel was practically a fortress. Built in an old Spaniard style, the hotel was the perfect defense. Courtyard in the middle, Balconies everywhere facing inward and outward. guards could easily hide, and be stationed anywhere. But that also gave them plenty of positions to hide, as well. Really this would be all about luck. Starling prayed that they had enough.

Ivy snorted, "Just make sure tall, dark and brooding stays the hell away from me. I promised not to make any trouble since Harley wants to play hero now in New York."

"I did hear about that. Now the League of Shadows is dangerous, they may come after you if they find that you have been helping us."

Ivy flipped her long red hair, "Please, Starling. I can take care of myself. Now you all are giving me a lot of money for this job. Money that I can use for my plants."

"And as long as you don't give us a reason we'll stay away from you and Harley," Starling stated their agreement.

"Alright looks like the show is about to start. I've got cameras pulled up of the fight would you like to watch?" Starling offered.

"A chance to watch all of the Batfamily fight without being the one to get their teeth knocked in, count me in." On the couch, Ivy took a seat next to Starling Carefully eyeing the laptop on the girl's lap. "I've always wanted to see some of the world's best fighters in action without being the one fighting them."

"Then this is a good opportunity. " In Starling's ear, she could hear everyone prepping. In one hushed tone, her father asked for confirmation on Ivy's plants. Starling looked towards the older woman who nodded, "This is Star, we have confirmation that the present is in place."

"Great." Nightwing said. Starling could almost hear the cocky smirk in his voice. "Hood, Tell our friends we're here." On cue, the outside front yard of the condemned hotel lights up like fireworks. Personally, Starling wished she could have been the one to do the job. However, it was Red Hood who took care of the pyrotechnics for the night. It was all flashy and for show, nothing that could cause any real damage. Completely controlled. As Ivy jumped a little in surprise, Starling smiled faintly remembering her training with Jason. The first time he instructed her on this, she nearly killed the both of them. That's when she learned there was an art to it.

Starling studied the camera on Hood's helmet. It seemed that the bait had not been taken yet. Starling bit her lip, praying Ra's wouldn't see through this whole plan factored on this moment. Starling let out a sigh of relief when assassins came spilling out hotel weapons ready, Dozens of them came out at once. Starling raised her hand.

"Starling, Ivy Now!" Nightwing ordered. Starling slicked her wrist and suddenly, Huge thick vines came onto the screen. Starling turned and found that Ivy had her eyes closed focussing on controlling her plants, making sure that everything went according to the plan. The first thing the vines did was block all the entrances to the hotel, making sure that none of the assassins ordered to come out were able to make it back in and assist the now defenseless. Ra's al Ghul. Next the rest of the vines began grabbing assassin and holding them tightly to the point where none of them could move. They struggled, but when it became clear that they were going nowhere Nightwing spoke again.

"Great, now phase two should begin." With all the entrances blocked, there was a slim window to get everyone into the building through service tunnels underneath the hotel. Starling and Ivy watched the two-minute window was being taken advantage of by Black Bat, Batman, Red Robin, Nightwing, and Huntress. As Ra's was sure to have guards posted there who had to check in at regularly scheduled intervals this was a very tough process. Which meant waiting for the checking in to happen, taking out the guards and sneaking the fighters into the building. Batgirl and Red Hood stood outside to make sure no surprises happened.

Starling sighed. Her part was done. Now, she had to let the others work. Starling packed up her gear quickly. If she left now she might be able to get there before everything was over with.

"Ivy, I can trust that the vines will stay up for at least another hour?" Starling asked. Ivy nodded. "Good. Thanks for this. We really owe you one!" Starling shouted as she ran out the door to meet everyone else while they faced Ra's al Ghul.

"That money better be wired to my account!" Poison Ivy shouted, but Starling was already gone. "Damn, I might as well join the Justice League I'm such a good guy." Ivy said with a sigh.

* * *

Inside the building was in much better shape then Nightwing had previously thought. It certainly looked better than the outside. It was no wonder that Ra's easily made it his hideout instead of using one of his typical underground caverns.

"Hello, Detective." The PA system over the heads of the vigilantes spoke with that familiar accented tone that held wisdom, age and something else that Nightwing could never place but it made a shiver go down his back. Honestly, Ra's always creeped him out.

"If you really want the boy back, then I dare you to try. He's on the top floor. I've sent an escort ." As Nightwing and the others heard the words a female ninja stepped into the light and bowed.

"Red Robin and Huntress stay here," Batman spoke. Huntress looked up surprised. She didn't want to be left out of this one, but next to her Red Robin shook his head. Nightwing had to admit while normally splitting up would be a bad idea. If something unexpected happened they still had them waiting to get them out. Huntress must have seen the logic behind her staying behind and stayed silent.

Nightwing, Black Bat, and Batman followed the ninja into the surprisingly working elevator up to the top floor of the aged hotel. In the large ballroom before them stood The Head of the Demon himself. A very alive and well looking Damian next to the man.

"Hello again, Detective." Ra's spoke. "I see you've come for the boy. I must admit, I'm rather surprised at the speed of which you've located me. I was sure would have to kill at least four more people to gain your attention."

"Yeah well, calling us out by hanging a teacher's mutilated corpse for all to see was a sure fire way of gaining our attention. " Nightwing sneered.

"How witty of you, Grayson. I'm glad you're all here actually because as I'm sure you know today is a very special day. Today is my Grandson's fourteenth birthday." Ra's brought attention back to the restrained Damian.

Batman tensed. What was Ra's playing? "Let Damian go, Ra's and you can go without incident." Batman promised.

"Hmm." The ancient mused. "I might take you up on your offer. However, first I have things to take care of. Today is too special of a day for this to be ruined."

"What are you talking about?" Nightwing asked.

"I'm sure the boy's told you. He must be tested. He must be tested to see if he really is worthy of being the heir of the demon."

"This is all a load of crap, Ra's!" Nightwing shouted. "You and Talia both disowned Damian when he choose to stay with us years ago."

"Oh please." Ra's scoffed. "If it were that easy to wash away blood. He is my heir, whether you like it or not, and, therefore, must be tested. If he lives, he is strong, but if he dies… Maybe it was the wrong choice to choose you to sire my heir, Detective."

"Ra's…" The warning in Batman's tone was there. They were only 6 ninjas. It would be easy to defeat them however, Ra's still had Damian in his grasp. He could kill Damian while the fighting was happening. It was a standoff, and unlike they had planned the odds were not in their favor.

Batman calculated all the possible outcomes and none seemed to shine in his favor any more than the last. He could signal one of the others to come in and do a surprise attack, but that could easily get Damian caught in the crossfire, or worse force Ra's to make a move against Damian.

Batman had to think of a way to save his son, and he had to think quickly.

"Since you're so quiet why don't we start the-" Before Ra's could finish Batman threw a Batarang with a line attached to that meet and wrapped itself around Damian's forearms and yanked to boy forward into the waiting arms of Nightwing. As if sensing that they now needed cover, Blackbat reached inside her belt trapped the smoke pellets and smashed them on the ground creating a large smoke cloud. Without a word Nightwing picked up Damian and made a B-line for the elevator pressed the button for the first floor, and the door was cloud without any interference from the fighting join on before them. Nightwing knelt down and took the time to take the gag off of Damian's mouth.

"You okay?" Nightwing asked checking him over. From the look of things, it seemed he suffered a minor beating. Other than that he looked fine.

Damian nodded. "Father pulled my arm from its socket when he yanked me forward but other than that I'm fine. I was kicked around a little, but I'm fine."

"Good that means I can yell at once we get home free. You little brat, don't ever pull a stunt like this again, you got me!? What would have happened if I hadn't known to put a tracker on you? You could be dead right now!"

"Yeah, well. I figured I would have to face my grandfather eventually." Damian said with a pout.

"Yeah well eventually ain't today." The elevator stopped and they were meet with Huntress who had her crossbow ready.

"Oh thank god it's only you two. I thought I would have to- Nevermind. Let's get the kid out of here." Damian and Nightwing walked out of the elevator and no sooner did they step a foot off the elevator did it's doors close and begin climbing back up to the top floor.

Red Robin watched the elevator numbers increase till it hit the top floor. "We need to go. like yesterday." He said.

"Tim, what do you think is going to-" Nightwing never got to finish that statement as the elevator came crashing down the shaft. Smoke and debris flooded the room as the heroes dove out the way to avoid the crash.

Damian groaned in pain as Nightwing had pushed him to the ground on his injured shoulder. He began to cough as the dirty smoke filled air filled his lungs.

"Everyone Alive?" Nightwing called from on top of Damian. He had shielded to boy from the crash.

A deep dry cough came from the other side of the room that sounded like Red Robin. "I'm good. Huntress?" Red Robin called. There was no answer. "Oh god, Helena! Dick, get over here!" Red Robin's voice cracked as he screamed for his brothers.

Damian and Nightwing got up in a hurry and ran over to the sound of Red Robin's voice. The cloud of dust still loomed. It stung in Damian's eyes, however, he moved toward Red Robin.

"Tim! Where are you? Tim!" Nightwing called. His voice rising with every word.

"Over here!" The voice was quick and panicked. Damian doesn't believe he's ever heard red Robin sound so distressed.

Finally, the two found their way to Red Robin who was kneeling next to a very large piece of metal. Red Robin must have heard them coming because he turned his head and shouted towards them.

"It's Helena she's-" Red Robin didn't need to finish his words because Nightwing and Damian were able to witness it. An unconscious Huntress with a thick metal rod going through her torso.

"Oh god." Nightwing's voice shock. He careful looked at her with the coming closer to the woman. She had blood around her mouth, and her blood also stained the floor around them. She was pale, and… Nightwing watched her chest move up and down. Breathing. He sighed in relief she was breathing at least for now. They need to get her out of her and to a doctor immediately.

"Jason!" Nightwing called on his comm.

"What the hell is going on in there!" Red Hood cried into Nightwing's ear.

"It's Huntress. She's injured. The elevator must have snapped and came crashing down to the bottom floor. You and Batgirl come and get her out of here, and to a doctor, I don't care who and I don't care about where. She just needs to live." Nightwing ordered.

"Nightwing, Ivy blocked the entrances remember. We can't get in and you all can't get out at least until the GCPD get here."

"Shit." Nightwing audibly cursed. His own plan to make sure that they caught every last assassin had effectively trapped all of them. "Call them now, We'll try to keep Helena alive in the mean time."

"And we'll find a way in." Red Hood promised. Nightwing turned off his comm and turned to his brothers.

"Cass and Bruce are still upstairs. I need to get back up there." He announced to them.

"Dick." Red Robin closed his eyes as if he were trying t stop himself from screaming. "Helena could die. We need to stay with her. She needs us the most. Cass and Bruce can take care of themselves." Beside him, Damian nodded.

"I hate to agree with Drake for once, but he's right. They are the two best fighters we have. If anyone could defeat my grandfather it's them."

"Even still. I need to go. Someone's got to watch their backs." Red Robin stared at Nightwing.

"Fine, Go." He told him "We'll watch Helena. I'm sure Hood will find a way to get us out soon. Without a thank you, Nightwing took off towards Batman and Black Bat.

* * *

Starling pulled up to the sounds of explosions and the sight of Batgirl and Red hood furiously laying down more explosives.

Starling quickly got off her back and ran towards them.

"What the hell are you doing?!" She screeched. "Do you want Ivy to kill me! I promised her that her plants would be safe and here you are hurting them!"

"God, Mary, now is not the time we need to get in there. Helena's dying, and we need to get her to a doctor fast." The rage Starling felt quickly dissipated

"What? Oh god! It took me 45 minutes to get over here meaning that the vines will release everything in about 15 minutes. "Starling said as she examined the entrance.

"Helena may not have 15 minutes, Starling," Batgirl said. Starling nodded understanding the severity of the situation.

"I think I might have an idea."

* * *

Nightwing used his grapple to get to the top floor from the elevator shaft. He got there in time to find the three ninjas left and Ra's al Ghul who had picked up his sword to fight. Black Bat was busy blocking blows while Batman focused on Ra's himself.

Behind her, Black Bat failed to notice a Ninja Swinging a sword her way and Nightwing got there in just enough time to deflect it.

"Thanks. Did you get Damian out?" She questioned as she jumped over an assassin who ran into Nightwing only for him to punch them in the face.

"We're all trapped here at least until the police arrive. He's downstairs with Red Robin and Huntress, who's been seriously injured. We're on a clock. We need to finish this and get out if we're going to save Huntress's life. Things weren't looking too good."

Black Bat said nothing only clenched her jaw. As she threw herself into the fight with much more vigor than before. Nightwing followed suit. The clock was ticking and they had to get out of there.

Batman ducked and dodged the expertly swung sword as Ra's al Ghul tried to decapitate him.

"Running, Detective? I thought you wanted to save your son?" He mocked.

Batman lashed out with a kick which only grazed the elder martial artist and was forced to duck and roll from the swinging of the sword.

"We don't have to do this Ra's just let us go, and we all go home happy."

Ra's shook his head, "Not Today, Detective." Ra's Lunged at Batman who blocked each and every swing before swinging a punch and catching the demon's head in the jaw sending him back.

Behind him, Batman noted that Black Bat and Nightwing were working on the last ninja. They would finish him off soon.

"Give up Ra's. You're out of men, you're outnumbered, and Damian's already out of your hands. Leave." The Dark Knight ordered. "This is your last chance."

Ra's looked around and realized the situation was no longer in his favor if it ever were.

"There are always chances, Detective. I thought you would have learned that by now." The with great dexterity that one would usually not expect from a man Ra's age He flipped over Batman and threw himself down the now useless elevator shaft.

"Damn." Batman cursed and dove after him.

* * *

"I think I have an idea." Starling walked up to the entrance and stroked the vines were they was supposed to be the front entrance. She could feel her hair tickling the back of her neck. As she expected it was already starting to grow back. A bit slower than when she had her powers but still way faster than a normal human's hair growth.

"These vines are the ones Ivy uses to guard her own home, They know me and usually allow me into her place when I visit her," Starling explained. "So maybe if I just.." Starling placed a hand on the thick vine placing it on there for a moment, Seconds later the vines began to move, loosen and slide away from the door, but only the door. Starling wasted no time opening the door and running inside Red Hood and Batgirl following after.

"STOP!" It was Batman's voice that screamed causing the three to freeze in place just in front of the door. "Ra's is loose down here. We might catch him, don't loose sight of the door. We can't loose him!"

Everyone full alert and silent Red Robin broke this silent.

"We need to get Helena out. I don't know how much longer she has." He stressed.

Starling watched the darkness, she knew that even with everyone else's night vision on her sight was far better. Her hearing was also better. If anyone was going to know notice Ra's it would be her first. She just had to be perfect.

Starling looked around. No one moved. She also took the time to notice that Damian was alright. That brought her some ease, but they weren't home free yet. Damian stood in front of Tim and the injured Helena, watching, guarding. Sadly no one was watching Damian, but Starling.

Ra's was too fast for Starling to do anything but scream a futile warning at Damian.

"Damian!" Damian turned just in time to see Ra's with a syringe in his hand aimed at his neck. Damian didn't have time to block. The syringe went into his neck and whatever was inside it was now in Damian. From the momentum, Damian was pushed to the ground. Ra's stood over him grinning.

"The test has begun," He said with a sigh of relief. He didn't get another chance to say anything else as Red Robin punched him in the face, knocking the ancient unconscious.

Starling didn't remember running towards Damian, but she suddenly ended up on the ground next to him.

"He shot you with something, right? Are you okay?" She asked. Damian slightly dazed answered.

"I'm fine. He did something, but I don't what."

"We need to test the syringe for whatever was in there," Batman said. "First, we need to worry about Helena She needs medical attention." Damian nodded in agreement. She was still breathing for the time being, but if she was going to stay that way was an entirely different thing.

Damian stood up with a little help from Starling and noted that her hair had grown much from the last time he had seen her. He was now lightly touching her shoulder. Without realizing it, he reached out and grabbed a strand feeling the silk like hair between his fingers.

"Like the hair cut," He said with a grin. Starling recoiled away from him. Slapping his hand.

"You should be thanking me. I cut my hair for you. I love my hair more than you, you know!" She proclaimed.

"Yup, because cutting it for my sake certainly proves that," Damian replied evenly. Starling said nothing only turning her head away not bothering to look at him.

"I'll take Ra's to Arkham," Nightwing announced. "Don't know how long he'll stay there, but it's a start." Batman nodded and watched Nightwing carry the unconscious man out of the building. Then moved to help Red Robin and Red Hood take Huntress out of the building and to a hospital. Starling followed Batgirl and Black Bat out only to notice that Damian wasn't following her. She turned around to find him staring off into space, unmoving.

"Damian?" Starling called. He didn't answer. "Damian?" She called again. Then before Starling could call him again, Damian's eyes rolled to the back of his head and he was on the ground.

_"DAMIAN!"_

* * *

_Final word count: 17,059 _

_A/N: First off, I would like to apologize for the delay. I've talked about in previous chapter notes and on my page that I am in college now so time to write has been a little scare, adding the writers block, and issues I had editing this chapter then you can understand why it's taken me nearly a year to write this chapter, and to be honest, I almost didn't post it moving on to another thing, but I felt like Damian needed this chapter. _

_So this chapter, I hated it originally. It was definitely my least favorite to write, but the more I added and edited the better it got, so now it's ok, but the writing process was so terrible that I'm honestly just glad to be done with it. Damian needed this chapter for a character arc, and he's also getting another one, based off of one of my favorite Batman:TAS episodes. I have the next couple of chapters planned, but since the one that's coming up next wasn't in my original plans it may take a while. Hopefully not as long as this one, but not at least till the summer will it be coming out. _

_So, I saw a midnight premiere of Batman v Superman. I liked it as a comic book fan, but as a movie buff and aspiring movie critic, it was shit. That's all I can really say about it, other than I enjoyed it better than Man of Steel. It was worth the watch but would only pay for it because Batfleck and Gal Gadot's Wonder Woman was fucking awesome. _

_Anyway, thank you all for reading. Again sorry about the wait, but hey! I didn't make it to a year! I can't wait to start work on the next chapter, the chapter after is already finished. So until next time! _

_If you have any comment/concerns/questions please review! I do answer them, and they make the writing process so much more enjoyable. I would like to thank** gabysweet10, 21 is Awesome, Guest, 3DoorsDownAndAwayFromTheSun, Lia, and another guest** for thier reviews. _

_A big Thank you to,** Sirenmergirl** for her lengthy review that got me through this very hard to write chapter. _

_Thank you all I wouldn't have done it without you every single last one of your words, especially right now. I couldn't thank you enough. _

_Please don't forget to follow/favorite/review, and I will see you next chapter. _

_~Miyu K. _

**_Next chapter: The Sleepless Dream _**


End file.
